


our moments fall around us like confetti

by LostGeekMonkeyGirl



Category: The Haunting of Bly Manor (TV)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, F/F, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, One Shot, One Shot Collection
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-24
Updated: 2021-02-24
Packaged: 2021-03-16 12:48:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 28,827
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28956702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LostGeekMonkeyGirl/pseuds/LostGeekMonkeyGirl
Summary: a collection of moments from dani and jamie's life together.open to any prompts or ideas you may want me to write about for future chapters!
Relationships: Dani Clayton & Jamie, Dani Clayton/Jamie, damie - Relationship
Comments: 44
Kudos: 139





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> dani surprises jamie with tickets to a blondie concert

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is just a place to put all the random damie moments i've written which I don't know what to do with. i hope you enjoy them all and if you have any prompts you would like me to write please let me know! :)

It was no secret that Jamie was a huge Blondie fan. Jamie had basically lived in her Blondie t-shirt ever since the first day that she had bought it and her tiny flat in Bly used to be covered in Blondie posters. The first time Dani had visited Jamie’s flat, she had flicked through Jamie’s vinyl collection and the one that took pride of place at the front was Parallel Lines. Jamie didn’t play it anymore as it had been played so much that it now jumped. One of the relatively nicer foster parents Jamie had stayed with bought it for her birthday the year it came out and it was her most prized possession. No matter how many times she had moved or what path life had taken her on, she had always managed to hold onto it. 

Over the years as Blondie released new albums, Jamie would always be the first one at the record store down the road from their apartment in Vermont to buy a copy. Unfortunately, Jamie had never been able to see her favourite band live, but it was on her bucket list and she hoped that one day it would happen.

Dani was the first one to see the poster on the street corner a few blocks from their apartment. She had gone to buy her and Jamie lunch whilst Jamie watched the flower shop when she saw it. She scanned through the dates and made a mental note of the ones closest to them then walked back to the flower shop at twice her usual pace with a wide smile plastered on her face. 

She tried not to give anything away when she entered the shop and saw Jamie talking with a customer. Dani gave her a quick smile and placed their lunch on the counter and began checking the diary. 

“Whatcha doin?” Jamie said placing her hands on Dani’s hips as she kissed her cheek.

Jamie’s sudden actions shocked Dani who was trying not to be noticed looking though the diary. “Oh” Dani said, quickly standing up and closing the diary, “I, erm, I bought us tickets, to a erm, florist event thingy”. 

Dani knew she was no good at lying and was pleasantly surprised when her brain had started to come up with a reasonable excuse for her. 

“A florist event?” Jamie questioned, her eyebrows raising as she spoke.

“Yeah” Dani said confidently, “I saw a leaflet for it the other day and it looked interesting so I thought it might be useful to attend. We might be able to make some connections with other florists in the area and share ideas and stuff, I just thought it might help our business, is all. I was just checking the diary to see if we were free”.

Jamie smiled widely as she pushed Dani back against the counter, “You’re so adorable, do you know that?”. 

Dani just giggled in response as Jamie peppered her neck and face with small light kisses.

“Sounds fun, write it in the diary” Jamie said as she placed one final kiss on Dani’s lips before grabbing their lunch and walking into their office.

A few days later Jamie had gone to collect lunch and Dani was sure that Jamie would see the poster advertising Blondie’s upcoming tour on the street corner. Dani had already bought tickets and was planning on keeping it a secret from Jamie so that she could surprise her. She knew how much it would mean to Jamie to go and see her favourite band live and she felt bad having to lie to her, but she knew it was going to be worth it.

Soon enough, Jamie came marching through the front door of the shop carrying their lunch in her hand with a huge grin on her face. She headed straight past Dani and to the diary behind the counter. Dani watched as she saw Jamie’s face drop and she knew that she must have read the fake florist event that Dani had scribbled in for the same day as the Blondie concert. 

Jamie just nodded to herself slowly then ran her hand threw her hair and sighed. Dani’s heart dropped as she saw how disappointed Jamie was, but she knew that the surprise was going to be worth it.

Jamie caught Dani looking at her and she flashed her a wide smile before walking over to her. “Here, I got you your favourite” Jamie said as she handed Dani her bagel. 

“Thanks, baby” Dani said before kissing Jamie’s cheek.

“I love you, y’know” Jamie said softly as she reached a hand up to place on Dani’s cheek.

Dani smiled widely at Jamie’s comment. She couldn’t believe how Jamie was reacting to the situation. She had thought that maybe Jamie would ask her if they could change the event or cancel it or she thought that maybe Jamie would be a little grumpy for a few days before finally admitting to herself that she couldn’t go. But Dani never expected this, Jamie just smiling widely at her and telling her that she loved her.

“I love you too baby, so much” Dani replied softly before leaning forward to kiss Jamie’s lips then taking her by the hand and into their office to eat lunch.

The weeks leading up to the concert had been long and stressful. They had been so busy with the shop that they had hardly got to spend any quality together outside of work. Neither of them had mentioned the large poster that they would often walk past detailing Blondie’s upcoming tour. Jamie had just thought that Dani hadn’t seen it and Dani just thought that Jamie had come to the conclusion that she couldn’t go. 

The day of the concert had finally arrived and the atmosphere in the shop was a little off. Jamie hadn’t exactly been herself all day and Dani had guessed what the reason was. 

2pm had rolled around slowly and when the last customer left the store, Dani walked over to the front door and closed it, turning the open sign to closed.

“We’ve got another 3 hours left yet” Jamie said as she watched Dani in confusion.

“No, we don’t, we’re closing early today” Dani stated simply as she walked back over to the counter.

Jamie just stood looking at her with knitted eyebrows, “Why?”.

“I left you a present upstairs on the bed, maybe it will make a little more sense after you’ve seen that” Dani said smiling at Jamie whose eyebrows raised at the thought that had crossed her mind.

“We’ve never closed the shop this early to have sex before, what’s got into you today?” Jamie said smirking as she turned and walked herself up the stairs and into their apartment.

Dani followed Jamie a minute later and when she walked into their bedroom, she found Jamie sat on the edge of their bed with the concert tickets in her hands.

“Dani” Jamie whispered as she looked up at the blonde who had now entered their bedroom, “I, erm, I”.

Dani smiled and walked closer to Jamie and knelt down in front of her, “You like them?”.

A few tears fell from Jamie’s eyes as her gaze moved from the tickets in her hands to Dani’s face, “I don’t know what to say”.

Dani placed her hands on either side of Jamie’s face then kissed her lips lovingly. “Are you excited?” Dani asked as she pulled away.

“Yeah” Jamie said laughing a little as more tears fell from her eyes, “Yeah I am”.

“Well, come on then, we best be getting ready, we’ve got to drive all the way to Connecticut” Dani said giggling and pulling Jamie off the bed by her hand.

“Hey” Jamie said as she stood up, “What about the florist event?”.

“That was kind of a lie” Dani said sheepishly, “I wanted to surprise you with tickets you see, and I knew that you would see the poster down the street and probably buy your own tickets, so I had to come up with a distraction”.

“Oh my God” Jamie said laughing, “You lied to me?”.

“I know, I'm sorry, I felt so bad when you checked the diary and realised that we were busy”.

Jamie smiled widely at Dani, “You wanna know something about that day, Poppins? That was the day I really knew how much I love you. I mean I already knew how much I loved you before that day but when I opened the diary and read we were going to the florist event and that I couldn’t go to see Blondie, I wasn’t even mad. I mean I was a little upset obviously, but you were so excited about going to that florist event and helping our business that I didn’t even care that I couldn’t see Blondie, I just wanted to see you happy”.

“Jamie” Dani whispered through the lump in her throat, “Come here”.

Dani opened her arms and let Jamie fall into them before hugging her tightly, “I love you so much, I can't even tell you”.

“I love you too, Poppins, thank you so much for this, I mean it, thank you” Jamie said seriously before placing a single kiss on Dani’s neck before nuzzling her face closer into her.

“You’re welcome, sweetheart” Dani said, holding Jamie a little tighter.

Jamie had given Dani one of her many Blondie t-shirts to wear which Dani thought was adorable and happily took it from her and put it on along with one of Jamie’s old leather jackets. 

“Fuck, you look so hot dressed like this” Jamie said as she snuck up behind Dani, spun her around then pressed her against their bedroom door before kissing and nibbling her neck.

Dani just giggled and let out a few soft moans before pushing Jamie back a little and saying, “Okay, okay, enough of that otherwise we’ll never get there”.

The drive to Connecticut was long but it was filled with excitement and good music.

“I feel like a kid” Jamie said beaming as they sat in their car in the parking lot of the venue, “I don’t think I’ve ever been this excited before”.

Dani smiled widely at Jamie and took hold of her hand, “I love you so much, I hope you know that”.

Jamie moved their conjoined hands towards her lips and kissed the back of Dani’s hand, “I do know, and I hope you know how much I love you too”.

“I do” Dani whispered softly before leaning over the centre console and kissing Jamie’s lips.

“Best. Night. Ever” Jamie said in between kissing Dani’s lips. 

They had arrived home a few minutes ago from the concert and as soon as they had stepped foot into their apartment, Jamie had taken Dani by the hand and lead them to their bedroom.

“I’m so glad you enjoyed it” Dani said smiling up at Jamie who was sat in top of her.

“Oh, here, I got you something” Jamie said reaching over for her bag that she had thrown on the floor a few minutes earlier. Jamie pulled out a t-shirt and handed it to Dani.

“Jamie” Dani said smiling widely as she held up the t-shirt to look at it.

“Thought instead of you borrowing one of mine, you could have a Blondie t-shirt of your own” Jamie said sitting back for a moment to observe Dani’s reaction.

“I love it, thank you, baby” Dani said before lovingly connecting their lips together.

“I’ve had a great time tonight, thank you, again. I know I’ve said it like a thousand times tonight but, I really mean it. And it meant so much more to me being able to go with you, it kinda felt surreal y’know. I used to listen to some of those songs when I was in a pretty dark place but to sing them with you tonight, in the happiest time of my life, it felt like a full circle moment or something” Jamie said seriously as tears welled up in her eyes but never fell.

“I love you so much” Dani said smiling softly at Jamie before pulling her in for a hug.

“I love you so much too, baby” Jamie said before pulling away a little and whispering in Dani’s ear “Can I show you just how much?”.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> jamie breaks her wrist and has to learn how to accept help from others

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you enjoy this chapter and if you have any prompts you would like me to write please let me know! :)

Jamie was as independent as they came. From a very early age, the only person that she had to reply on was herself. She had learnt to make food by herself, how to do the laundry by herself, how to tie her shoes by herself and just about everything else so, when the day came that she was unable do everything for herself, she found it extremely difficult. 

It had started as an ordinary day in the flower shop. Dani and Jamie had opened the shop at the usual time of 9am. They took orders from customers, sold a few plants and took in a few deliveries. Summer was their busiest season by far, many more people wanted flowers and arrangements for weddings, parties and other events and because the weather was nicer, there was inevitably more footfall in the area too. 

It had just past 11am and Jamie had gone for her morning break whilst Dani finished off some arrangements that were being collected that afternoon. As Dani was ticking off the last arrangement on her list, she heard a loud bang and a series of mumbled curse words that could only be from one person. 

Dani rushed towards the door to the stairs which led up to their apartment above the shop. 

“Jamie? Are you okay?” Dani shouted nervously as she ran towards the sound. 

She twisted the door handle and pushed the door open, but it only opened so far before it got stuck so, Dani pushed it harder to try and open it. 

“Fuck, wait a minute” Jamie mumbled a little annoyed from behind the door. 

“Oh God, I’m so sorry, I didn’t realise you were behind there, are you okay? I heard a bang” Dani said, trying to patiently wait for Jamie to move from behind the door so that she could check that she was okay. 

Jamie stood up and moved back a little so that she could open the door. 

As the opening door slowly revealed Jamie stood behind it, Dani knew instantly that she wasn’t okay. Tears were welling up in Jamie’s wide eyes as she was holding up her arm. 

“Baby, what happened? Are you okay? What hurts?” Dani said as she instinctively stepped forward and placed her hands tentatively onto Jamie’s flushed cheeks. 

“Did I hurt you, I’m so sorry I didn’t realise you were behind the door, are you okay?” Dani continued as her eyes scanned over Jamie’s body looking for what might be the issue.

“My wrist is fucking killing me” Jamie said as she screwed her face up in pain and looked down at it and moving it cautiously. “I was just coming back down to the shop and next thing I knew I was on the floor”. 

“Here, sit down” Dani said backing Jamie up so she could sit on a step at the bottom of the staircase, “Let me have a look”. 

Jamie sat down and then lifted her arm up to give it to Dani. She had never felt so much pain before in her life and she could feel the bitter sting of tears as they rolled down her face. 

“Oh, baby” Dani said softly as she gently took hold of Jamie’s arm so she could inspect her wrist more closely. It didn’t look good. Even though Jamie had hurt it just a minute or so ago, the area was already swelling fast. 

“Okay” Dani said standing up and brushing down her skirt, instantly going into teacher mode, “Stay here, I’m just going to get you an ice pack, is there anything else that you need?”

Jamie looked up at Dani with worried eyes, a little confused as to why she was asking her if there was anything else that she needed but, she shook her head in response. 

Dani was back by Jamie’s side in less than a minute with her bag around her shoulder and an ice pack in hand. She had been on a few first aid courses over the years as a teacher, so she knew exactly what to do in this situation.

“Here” Dani said softly, placing the ice pack wrapped in a towel onto Jamie’s wrist that had already doubled in size since she had last saw it. 

“Do you think it’ll be alright?” Jamie asked quietly, the worry in her voice evident, “It’s fucking huge”. 

Dani reached her hands out and wiped the tears from Jamie’s cheeks, but it was no use as they were only followed by more. 

Jamie wasn’t crying as her body had gone into shock. She was just staring down at her wrist with wide eyes as tears naturally fell as a reaction to the pain her body was experiencing. 

“Think we should get it checked out” Dani said softly, not wanting to say to Jamie that her wrist was definitely broken and that she needed to go straight to hospital as she didn’t want to add to the shock that her girlfriend was already in. 

“Okay” Jamie replied, “I can call the doctor tomorrow, see if he’ll look at it”.

Dani smiled softly at Jamie and took hold of her hand that wasn’t connected to a clearly broken wrist, “I think we should get it checked out now”. 

“Oh, okay” Jamie said as she copied Dani’s movements and stood up. 

Dani then led them outside to the work truck and helped Jamie in before getting in herself and driving to the hospital. 

The realisation of what had just happened hit Jamie halfway to the hospital. Dani was driving, keeping one eye on Jamie and one on the road. All of a sudden, Jamie let out a loud whimper before she burst out crying. Her whole body shook violently whilst she stared down at her wrist that was now extremely swollen and wet with tears. 

“Oh, baby” Dani said softly as she reached out a hand to Jamie’s cheek, but kept her eyes focused on the road, “It’s okay, sweetheart, we’re almost there, you’re going to be okay”. 

“Fuck, Dani it’s bad isn’t it?” Jamie said looking at Dani with pure panic in her eyes. 

Dani moved her hand down to Jamie’s thigh and gave it a comforting squeeze, “You’re going to be fine, I promise”. 

Jamie held Dani’s hand tightly as they sat in the waiting room of the hospital. They usually refrained from physical affection in public but today was an exception. Although the waiting room was full and anyone who looked could see that they were holding hands, but it didn’t matter, Dani just wanted to comfort Jamie in any way that she could. Dani’s thumb ran back and forth over the pale skin of Jamie’s hand hoping it would provide some kind of comfort and reassure her that it was all going to be okay. 

After a while, Dani could feel that Jamie’s breathing had become a little erratic and she soon started shaking again. 

“Hey” Dani whispered softly, squeezing Jamie’s hand reassuringly, “In through your nose, out through your mouth, baby”. 

Jamie nodded which caused a few tears to fall from her eyes but then she began to breath as Dani had told her too. It was the same technique Jamie would try and get Dani to do when she would have a panic attack, so Dani knew that it would work. The technique did work, and soon enough Jamie’s breathing had stabilised again, and she wiped her tears away with her uninjured hand. 

Jamie hated showing any type of weakness, especially in front of people she didn’t know but the pain was so overwhelming, it was hard not to cry. However, she tried her best to hold back her tears and whimpers by closing her eyes and clenching her jaw tightly as she focused on Dani’s thumb tracing soothing patterns along her hand. 

Soon enough Jamie’s name was called, and she was taken for an x-ray. Dani held her hand for as long as she could before having to let her go as she couldn’t go with her into the x-ray room. 

As soon as Jamie came back out, her hand was back in the comforting grasp of Dani’s again. 

“What did you do?” the young doctor asked as she prepped what she needed to put a cast around Jamie’s wrist. 

Jamie had been given local anaesthetic so she was a little more like herself now that she couldn’t feel the pain. 

“Fell down the stairs” Jamie said chuckling a little as she remembered what she had done. 

“Okay so,” the doctor said smiling as she turned to face Jamie, “I’m just going to reset the bone okay? You shouldn’t feel a thing, but you probably won’t want to look at your wrist as I do it”. 

“Okay” Jamie said nervously as she took a deep breath in then released it slowly. 

“You can hold your friend’s hand if you would like or are you going to brave it alone?” the doctor said, trying her best to put Jamie at ease as her face had suddenly turned extremely pale. 

Dani shot forward out of the chair beside the bed that Jamie was laid on when she had heard the doctor’s suggestion. 

Dani smiled softly as she held her hand out for Jamie to take. 

Jamie took it gratefully and smiled nervously as Dani’s smile widened and squeezed her hand tightly. 

“I love you” Dani mouthed as she wrapped her other hand around their conjoined ones and smiled softly. 

Dani knew what she was doing. If she could keep Jamie’s eyes focused on her for long enough, then the doctor would have reset Jamie’s wrist without her even knowing. 

“I love you too” Jamie mouthed and smiled widely at Dani who was now gently massaging Jamie’s hand that she was holding. 

“Done” the doctor said as she started to prepare Jamie’s now reset wrist for casting. 

“Shit, really?” Jamie said turning around quickly to look at her wrist, “I didn’t even feel ‘owt”. 

Dani giggled and placed a soft kiss onto Jamie’s knuckles whilst the doctor had her back to them. 

Dani never let go of Jamie’s hand until they got back into their truck. 

On the ride home, Jamie fell asleep with her head pressed against the window and every so often she would let out a few soft snores. The doctor had given her some pretty strong painkillers, so this was probably her only chance at a pain-free sleep for at least a few days.

Dani smiled softly as she placed her hand on Jamie’s thigh when she stopped at a red light and Jamie’s hand instinctively reached out to hold it. 

Dani woke Jamie up with a soft kiss to her temple and helped her out of the car once they arrived home. 

Dani then helped Jamie up the stairs that she had fallen down a few hours earlier and into their apartment. 

“I’ve got it” Jamie said as she felt Dani’s hands hold onto her arm and help her up the stairs, “I didn’t break me leg y’know”. 

Dani laughed softly, but she never let go of Jamie’s arm, “Well if I remember correctly, you fell down these stairs not 5 hours ago, so I think you don’t have it”. 

Jamie just shook her head and chuckled as she marched up the stairs to prove a point to Dani that she could in fact use stairs correctly.

Dani then sat Jamie down on the sofa and helped her to take her jacket off.

As Dani was hanging both of their jackets on the coat hooks beside the door, she heard Jamie huff and mumble something under her breath. 

“Here, let me do it” Dani said as she rushed over to Jamie who was trying to get her boots off with one hand.

“No, it’s fine I can do it” Jamie said.

Dani knelt of the floor in front of Jamie and gently placed her hands over Jamie’s which was struggling to undo her double-knotted shoelaces.

“Here, just let me help you, baby” Dani said softly, sensing Jamie was getting frustrated already with not being able to do everything for herself.

Jamie let out a frustrated sigh and let go of her laces and lent back against the sofa.

Dani placed a gentle hand on Jamie’s knee then kissed it before taking off Jamie’s boots for her.

“Do you want to get changed into something a little more comfortable and maybe we could cuddle and watch a little TV or something?” Dani asked softly as she rested her chin on Jamie’s knee and looked up at her.

“What about the shop? Don’t people need to pick up their orders?” Jamie asked, sitting up a little to look at Dani.

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it, I’ll take care of it, just rest” Dani said rubbing Jamie’s other knee with her hand softly, “Come on, let’s go get changed”.

Jamie was even more frustrated when she couldn’t undress herself and Dani had to do everything for her. Although she loved Dani undressing her, it was usually in very different circumstances.

“I said I've got it didn’t I?” Jamie said sternly, raising her voice ever so slightly. She didn’t want to shout at Dani as she knew that she was only trying to help her, but Jamie was so used to never needing help that it was hard to just give in a take it when she did need it.

Dani stopped what she was doing and slowly let go of Jamie’s jeans that were now halfway down her legs then moved backwards away from Jamie and stood up. She then turned her back to Jamie and went to find her some PJs to busy herself so that the tears that were welling up in her eyes didn’t fall.

Jamie knew that she had upset Dani and tried to walk towards her but was stopped by her jeans bunched around her ankles.

“Shit, I'm sorry Dani, I didn’t mean to shout, I’m just,” Jamie let out a frustrated sigh as she tried to pull her leg out of her jeans, but they were stuck to her ankles, “I’m just so used to doing everything on my own that, well, I’m finding it a little hard, I'm sorry, I really shouldn’t have shouted.

Dani stopped her absent-minded rummaging through a draw to listen to Jamie. She knew she hadn’t meant to shout but it still hurt Dani that she had done.

Dani turned round to face Jamie after a few moments of silence, “I know” she said softly as she walked back over to her. 

Jamie waddled a few steps to try and meet Dani halfway but the jeans that were still attached to her were making it a little difficult.

“I’m sorry, I really am. I’m not mad at you, I'm just frustrated with the situation and I know I shouldn’t have taken it out on you, you’re only trying to help me, I know that. I’m sorry, baby” Jamie said as she wrapped her arm around Dani and kissed her cheek. It was an awkward hug, Jamie had her one good arm draped around Dani’s neck and Dani didn’t lean in too closely as not to hurt Jamie’s arm that was now in a sling pressed to her torso, but it allowed Jamie to express what she wanted to, without words.

“I know, baby” Dani whispered softly as she rubbed Jamie’s back comfortingly, “Just let me help you okay?”.

“Okay” Jamie whispered, placing another kiss on Dani’s cheek which Dani returned on her lips.

“Here” Dani said giggling as she pulled away and looked down, “Can I help you out of your pants?”.

“Poppins” Jamie said, her infamous smirk now spread across her lips, “You flirt”.

Dani just laughed as she bent down and helped untangle Jamie’s legs from her jeans.

The rest of the night was spent with Jamie wrapped up in Dani’s arms as they sat snuggled up under their duvet watching whatever they could find on TV. Although Jamie knew that it was going to be hard having to rely on someone other than herself for the next 6 weeks, but she was glad that that someone would be Dani.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> jamie has a nightmare and dani tries to comfort her

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for all the positive feedback, I hope you enjoy this next chapter!! :)

Nightmares were a pretty common occurrence for both Dani and Jamie. Both had suffered with them for most of their lives but when they began living together, they both had less and less of them, however, every once in a while, they would return.

Jamie had always been a light sleeper so she would often wake up a lot throughout the night which meant that if Dani ever had a nightmare, she would usually wake up and be able to wake Dani up too and comfort her.

However, Dani was a very deep sleeper and rarely woke up during the night but she always seemed to sense if Jamie was in some kind of distress and her body would naturally wake up so that she could be there for Jamie.

It had been a stressful week for Dani and Jamie at the flower shop. A pipe had burst at the beginning of the week which had damaged one corner of the store and ruined a lot of their stock. Luckily, the pipe had been fixed quickly and the work men which they had called to repair to damaged part of the shop had done a good job, so the shop was more or less back to normal. However, the worry had kept Jamie up for the past few nights and this was the first night in a week that she had managed to get more than a couple of hours of sleep.

Dani and Jamie had fallen asleep like usual, legs and arms tangled up in each other with Dani laid behind Jamie holding her tightly.

Soft whimpers that were growing increasingly louder and erratic movements of Jamie’s limbs had woken Dani up from her sleep.

Dani opened her eyes and squinted as she tried to figure out what was happening. 

The room was still dark, so it was hard for Dani to make out what Jamie was doing next to her but as soon as she heard a cry escape Jamie’s clenched jaw, Dani knew exactly what was happening.

“Hey, baby” Dani whispered softly as she sat up in bed and placed a gentle hand on Jamie’s arm, “Jamie, sweetheart, wake up for me”.

The cries falling from Jamie’s mouth were getting increasingly louder as her head moved quickly from side to side and her legs began kicking out.

“Hey, sweetheart” Dani said softly again but this time she raised her voice just a little to try and compete with Jamie’s cries.

“Jamie, baby, you need to wake up” Dani said a little more sternly as she gently shook her girlfriend’s shoulder.

Jamie’s cries and whimpers continued as her legs violently kicked out underneath the duvet.

Even though the room was dark, Dani could make out a few tears that had escaped Jamie’s tightly shut eyes and she wiped them away for her gently.

“Jamie, sweetheart, come on baby, wake up for me” Dani said, her voice giving away her panic now as Jamie still hadn’t woken up. 

It usually didn’t take too long for Dani to wake Jamie up when she was having a nightmare but for some reason, this time it seemed to be taking ages.

Dani continued gently shaking Jamie’s shoulder to try and wake her and when she finally noticed Jamie’s eyes opening, her gentle shaking turned into soothing strokes.

“Hey, sweetheart, it's okay, you’re okay, it's me” Dani said softly as not to frighten Jamie as she looked around the room disorientated.

Jamie’s wide eyes landed on Dani and when she spoke, the panic in them faded as Jamie slowly came to understand what had happened.

“It's okay sweetheart, you were just having a bad dream” Dani whispered as she continued to soothingly stroke Jamie’s arm.

Jamie then suddenly burst out crying as she reached out for Dani and clung to her tightly.

“Hey, hey it’s okay baby, you’re okay, you’re safe” Dani said softly as she wrapped her arms around Jamie and brought her closer into her, “You’re okay Jamie, it’s okay darling, it’s okay”.

Dani ran her hands up and down Jamie’s back hoping it would provide her with a little bit of comfort and help sooth her crying.

Jamie gripped onto Dani’s nightshirt tightly as she sobbed loudly into her chest.

Jamie never cried in front of anyone, let alone loud painful vulnerable cries, but Dani was the exception. Dani was always the exception. With Dani, Jamie felt safe enough to be able to express whatever emotion she was feeling and in the present moment that emotion was fear. 

After a few heart-breaking minutes, Jamie’s cries slowed down to tired whimpers as Dani held her close. 

Dani always knew how to comfort Jamie, ever since they had first met. Jamie found it hard to trust people but for some reason had felt safe with Dani the minute they had met. Ever since then, a gentle touch, a soft look or a tight hug from Dani was enough to comfort Jamie, whatever her worries. However, she needed more than just a simple hug from Dani to relieve her distress after a nightmare.

“Hey, how are you doing down there?” Dani asked softly after a few moments of silence had occurred after Jamie’s cries had stopped.

Jamie looked up from where her head was resting against Dani’s chest, just above her breasts.

There was so much pain evident in Jamie’s eyes as she looked up at Dani that Dani had to hold back her own tears from falling.

“I’m sorry” Jamie said, her voice hoarse from crying.

“There’s nothing you need to be sorry for baby, it’s okay” Dani said softly as she pressed a loving kiss to Jamie’s slightly sweaty forehead.

“Thank you” Jamie whispered, almost too quiet for Dani to hear after a few moments of silence had passed between them.

“You’re more than welcome, baby” Dani whispered as she squeezed Jamie a little tighter, “Shall I make us some hot chocolate and we can watch find something funny on TV?”.

After Dani had a nightmare, a few minutes of Jamie holding her and soothing her would sometimes be enough for her to be able to fall back to sleep but when she had quite a distressing nightmare, like the one Jamie had just had, she usually struggled to sleep again for a few hours and guessed that Jamie would be the same.

Jamie just nodded her head slowly and sniffed a little before wiping her nose on her sleeve. 

“Come on then baby” Dani said standing up and grabbing a hoodie from the chair nearby. 

“Let’s put this on you so you don’t catch a chill” Dani said as she bent down in front of Jamie who was still sat on the bed and helped her put the hoodie on.

Jamie flashed her a small grateful smile before she stood up and wrapped her arms around Dani.

Dani kissed Jamie’s cheek and rubbed her back soothingly before Jamie let her go.

Dani wrapped Jamie up in the duvet as she sat on the couch in the living room and handed her the TV remote. “Here’s the remote baby, I'm just going to put the kettle on okay, I’ll be right back”.

Jamie just nodded slowly and stared down at the remote that Dani had handed her. Her eyes were blank, and her skin was pale as she tried to get the vivid images of her nightmare out of her head.

Dani filled the kettle and put it on the stove before rushing back into the living room to check on Jamie.

Dani sat on the sofa next to Jamie under the duvet and reach out to hold her hand, “How are you feeling now?” Dani asked softly, worry evident in her voice.

“A little better” Jamie said quietly as she squeezed Dani’s hand.

“Good, I'm glad” Dani whispered before placing a soft kiss to Jamie’s temple, “I’ll be right back, sit tight” Dani said as she disappeared into the kitchen to make them both a hot chocolate.

Hot chocolate was the only safe drink that Dani could make. Jamie handled the tea and the coffee and just about every other drink there was, but hot chocolate was Dani’s speciality. She had practiced a lot when she worked as a teacher and would often make the drink for her class on special occasions or when they deserved a treat, so it was the one drink Jamie trusted her to make.

“Here you go, baby” Dani said quietly as not to startle Jamie who was staring absent-mindedly at the TV in front of her.

“Thanks” Jamie said softly as she took hold of the mug of hot chocolate that Dani had made for her.

“I even put whipped cream and marshmallows on the top for you, just how you like” Dani said smiling softly at Jamie and she sat down next to her under the duvet.

“Thank you” Jamie said, smiling softly as she leant her head on Dani’s shoulder as Dani put her arm around Jamie.

A few moments of silence passed between the pair as they sipped their hot chocolate and watched the late-night film that was playing on the TV.

“Do you wanna talk about it, your dream?” Dani asked softly in a tone that reassured Jamie that it would be okay if she said no.

Jamie nodded slowly and shifted herself a little in Dani’s arms.

“It was stupid really” Jamie said softly as she took in a deep breath.

“Nothing’s stupid” Dani said softly as she placed a soft kiss against Jamie’s temple.

Jamie cleared her throat a little before she said, “It started off like it usually does. This time we were in the kitchen and I was cooking then all of a sudden, the water in the pan just boiled over. I swear I was watching it carefully, but it all happened so fast”.

Dani placed her mug down on the side table and reached out to hold Jamie’s hand as she spoke.

Dani had heard this part of the dream many times now since they had been together. Every time Jamie has a nightmare, it always starts the same way, with a pot of water boiling over.

“Then all this water starts coming up from the floor” Jamie continued, her voice becoming more and more strained as she spoke, “And the kitchen was flooding, and I tried to stop it, but I couldn’t, and the water was getting higher and higher and higher”.

Tear were beginning to well in Jamie’s eyes as she spoke, and Dani just held onto her tighter as if trying to help alleviate some of Jamie’s pain as she recalled her nightmare.

“Then you were on the other side of the kitchen and you were struggling to swim, and I tried to get to you, but I couldn’t… and I tried, I tried so hard Dani I really did” Jamie said, her voice breaking as she began to cry.

“Shh, baby, it’s okay, we’re okay, aren’t we?” Dani whispered as she quickly wiped away some of her own tears that had fallen.

Jamie nodded slowly before saying, “But it felt so real Dani, you were there, and I tried, I tried so hard to save you, I really did but I couldn’t and-”.

“Shhh, baby it's okay, sweetheart, it's okay, I'm okay” Dani whispered softly into Jamie’s ear as she held her tightly as Jamie cried into her chest again.

A few minutes passed by as Dani held Jamie tightly and whispered comforting things into her ear in the hopes of trying to sooth her. 

Eventually, Jamie’s cries slowed down to just soft sniffs and whimpers. 

Dani laid the both of them down on the sofa so that she was behind Jamie, holding her tightly.

“I love you” Jamie whispered, barely audible over the sound of the TV, but Dani heard it.

“I love you too Jamie, so much, I hope you know that” Dani whispered back as she held Jamie tightly in her arms and placed loving kisses to her cheek.

“I know” Jamie said back as she placed her hand on top of Dani’s that was resting on her stomach, “And thank you for tonight, you always make me feel so safe”.

“You’re welcome, sweetheart” Dani said as she kissed Jamie’s earlobe, “And we’re always safe when we’re together, baby”.

They then spent the rest of the night laid on the sofa watching the TV until they both drifted off to sleep. Dani made sure to stay awake until she heard Jamie’s breathing become rhythmic and stable, indicating that she had fallen asleep safely in her arms before Dani let sleep take over her tired body too.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> jamie starts to get baby fever

Jamie wasn’t the biggest fan of children. She wouldn’t go so far as to say that she hated them, as hate is a strong word, but she just really strongly despised them. It hadn’t helped growing up in foster care where she was surrounded by loads of nosey impatient little kids who wouldn’t let her have a moment of privacy. And it also hadn’t helped that she was left alone at a young age to care for her brothers which she had always thought she had failed at, even though she was just a child herself and was in no way responsible for what had happened.

Growing up, Jamie had never really understood the whole excitement around marriage and having children. Her friends at school couldn’t wait to find boyfriends and get married and have babies but Jamie never saw the appeal. She didn’t know whether it was because she was gay that she never saw the appeal as she knew that she would never be able to actually get married and have children or whether it was because she had seen her parents do the whole ‘get married young and have kids’ thing and saw how that turned out that she didn’t want to follow in their footsteps. Either way, Jamie had just accepted that she was probably not going to get married and that there was no way she could or even wanted to have children.

However, it had all started when she and Dani were still working at Bly. She was standing at the foot of Flora’s bed whilst Dani sat next to Flora trying to comfort her one day when she was sick. As Jamie watched Dani fuss over Flora, she had felt a tingly sensation in her stomach and her heart do a little flutter. She had just put it down to the fact that she was a little worried about Flora’s wellbeing and that she was starting to fall for the young au pair sat beside the little girl who she was trying so hard to comfort.

Jamie had a little bit of a love/hate relationship with the kids who lived at the manor. They were quite sweet sometimes and always seemed to want the best for Jamie, especially Flora. After all they had been through, Jamie was amazed at how kind and caring they both were and she couldn’t help but harbour feelings of love for the both of them, although she would never have admitted that to anyone. However, as every kid does, they misbehaved and that often involved destroying parts of the garden that Jamie had worked very hard to maintain and that’s where the hate part of the relationship had developed. 

The second time it had happened was when her and Dani were leaving Bly and Dani had naturally took hold of her hand whilst she was saying goodbye to Flora. Jamie had put it down to the nerves and excitement that she was feeling however, it was the same unmistakable tingly feeling in her stomach and fluttering sensation in her heart that she had felt before.

Over the years, the feeling had laid dormant and Jamie had thought no more about it until 3 years after they had left Bly and started their life together in Vermont. One day a young woman came into their store with a baby in a pram. Jamie hadn’t thought much more of it as she was busy making orders in the back room and people came in with young children all the time. They usually liked to grab at her flowers and plants and Jamie would cringe every time she saw a small hand reach up to grab hold of a leaf.

A few minutes had passed before she felt the familiar feeling. She had immediately stopped what she was doing when she heard Dani cooing over the baby and using a voice that Jamie had never heard before. Jamie placed her scissors down as she listened for a moment to Dani’s voice as she talked to the baby. She then turned around so that she could see what was happening. Dani was leaning over the side of the pram and was she making silly faces to the baby and playing peak-a-boo. And there it was again, stronger than before, the same tingly sensation in her stomach as her heart began to flutter.

The baby’s Mother then said something to Dani that Jamie couldn’t make out before picking the baby up and giving it to Dani. Dani’s face lit up as she took the baby from its Mother and Jamie couldn’t help but marvel in how seamless and natural it looked when Dani did so. 

Jamie watched for a moment as Dani bounced a little on her feet as she  
rocked the baby in her arms. Dani smiled brightly down at the baby as she continued cooing and talking to it.

It wasn’t long before Dani looked up to find Jamie and her smile grew wider as she locked eyes with Jamie who had been watching her for a while now. Dani motioned for Jamie to come out of the back office and Dani walked a few steps to meet her, not wanting to walk too far from the baby’s Mother just in case she needed to give her back quickly.

“Look, isn’t she gorgeous” Dani said softly, half to Jamie and half to the baby in her arms as Jamie stood next to her and looked down at the baby with a furrowed brow.

Jamie had to admit that the baby was pretty cute, and their big blue eyes reminded her of Dani’s. “Yeah” Jamie whispered as she peered over Dani’s shoulder, half hiding from the gaze of the baby who was now fixated on her.

“Aww look, she likes you” Dani said, noticing the baby’s eyes were now staring up at Jamie, “Do you want to hold her?”.

Jamie’s eyes widened in fear at Dani’s words and shook her head quickly, “Erm, nah, erm, no, no I'm good, she seems happy enough with you”.

“It’s okay, you can hold her if you want” the baby’s Mother said, turning around to look at Jamie and giving her a bright reassuring smile, “She’s not bothered who holds her, she just likes the attention I think”.

Jamie just smiled nervously and looked back down at the baby in Dani’s arms and she was a little taken aback by how strong her desire to hold the baby actually was.

“It’s okay, you won't hurt her” Dani said softly as she smiled lovingly at Jamie.

Jamie just nervously held out her arms and Dani smiled widely as she delicately passed over the baby to her girlfriend. 

“Aww you’re a natural” the baby’s Mother said as she turned her attention away from the lilies in her hands and onto Jamie.

“You are” Dani agreed as she gave Jamie a reassuring smile which seemed to ease Jamie’s nerves a little.

As soon as the baby was in her arms, the tingling and fluttering sensations only grew stronger and they skyrocketed when Dani placed a quick kiss on her cheek.

“What’s her name?” Jamie asked as she looked down at the baby who was looking straight back up at her.

“Lilly” her Mother replied, “Hence why I came to buy some”.

Dani smiled brightly and left Jamie’s side before walking the few steps over to the baby’s Mother to help her with what she wanted to buy.

Jamie panicked for a second as Dani had left her, but her worry was eased as she looked back down at the baby in her arms who was drifting off to sleep.

“Do you have any children?” Jamie heard the baby’s Mother say to Dani as she selected the best lilies they had before taking them over to the counter to wrap up.

“No, not yet” Dani said as she began wrapping the lilies up for the woman.

‘No, not yet’ Jamie replayed in her head as she watched the baby in her arms keep opening her sleepy eyes to look up at her. Did that mean that Dani wanted children? They had never discussed having children before. Or maybe Dani had only said it to disguise their relationship. If Dani had just said ‘no’ then it might have invited more questions, but ‘no, not yet’ seemed to imply that Dani would have children in the future. They didn’t necessarily hide their relationship, but they had only told a select few people that they trusted, and this woman was a complete stranger who had been kind enough to let them hold her daughter, so Jamie just guessed that that was the reason why Dani had said what she had said so, she just pushed the comment to the back of her mind and focused on the baby looking up at her.

“I think she’s fallen asleep” Jamie whispered as the baby’s Mother approached her a few minutes later.

“Oh, thank you so much, you’re such a natural. She hates falling asleep for me, especially during the day” the woman said as she took the baby gently from Jamie’s arms as not to wake her before she placed her back in the pram again.

“You looked so cute when you were holding the baby” Dani giggled with excitement after the woman had left the shop.

Jamie just rolled her eyes playfully and laughed before she went back to what she was doing before, but she couldn’t help but focus on the tingly feeling that was still occupying her stomach and what Dani had said about ‘not yet’.

As the months passed by, the woman who had come into their shop that day had become a very loyal customer as well as a very good friend. It turned out that she had just moved to the area with her new baby a week prior and she had a flourishing wedding planning business that she was hoping would be as successful in this part of town as it had been where she had just moved from. Dani and Jamie had agreed to help support her business by letting her advertise in their shop and in return the woman, whose name was Lola, would recommend their shop to her customers who wanted flowers for their wedding day. 

Apart from helping each other business wise, all three of them had become very good friends and would often have dinner together a couple of times a month. Lola was now part of the select few that Dani and Jamie had told about their relationship and she was extremely supportive of them and had even agreed to plan their wedding for them, if the day ever came when same-sex marriage was legalised. The more Dani and Jamie spent time with Lola and the more time Jamie was around baby Lily, who was fast growing into a toddler now, the tingling and fluttering sensations only grew, and she was starting to piece together what they meant. 

One day, a few months after they had first met Lily, Lola had asked if Dani and Jamie would mind babysitting for her as she had a very important meeting with a client and had no one to look after Lily for her. Dani had jumped at the chance and Jamie couldn’t deny that she was excited about it too.

Lily was dropped off at their apartment just before 1pm and Lola had promised that she would be as quick as she possibly could be. Dani had insisted that she take all the time that she needed, and that Lily would be in safe hands and they would call her if they needed too. 

Lola had grown very attached to Jamie and as soon as Dani brought her into their apartment, she reached out immediately for Jamie who happily took her into her arms.

“Oh, hey there sweetheart” Jamie said as she took Lily from Dani’s arms “I’ve missed you”.

Dani just smiled widely at her girlfriend as she gave Lily her full undivided attention. Dani’s heart always fluttered when she saw Jamie and Lily together and she couldn’t help the wide toothy grin that spread across her face each time.

“And how long do we get to keep you for today? I’m hoping forever” Jamie said as she lifted Lily in the air a few times which caused the both of them to laugh.

“You’re so good with her” Dani said giggling as she watched Jamie effortlessly make Lily laugh and smile. 

Jamie just shook her head dismissively and kissed Dani on the cheek.

“And we have her for a few hours, Lola said she would be as fast as she could” Dani replied, wrapping her arms around Jamie’s waist as she made funny faces at Lily over Jamie’s shoulder which caused Lily to laugh even more.

“Well, let’s hope she doesn’t come to get you too soon” Jamie said as she stuck her tongue out at Lilly who giggled and copied her action.

The rest of the afternoon went smoothly, the three of them watched some cartoons that Jamie had found on the TV and they played together for a while before they tried to put Lily down for her nap.

“She just won't settle” Dani said as she came into the kitchen with a crying Lily in her arms. Lily had been crying for a good half an hour now and it was obvious that she was tired, but she was fighting the sleep off the best she could.

“Does she need changing again?” Jamie asked as she finished the washing up that was in the sink before drying her hands and turning to face Dani.

“No, I just did her” Dani said rocking Lily in her arms to try and sooth her crying.

“Is she hungry?” Jamie asked, trying to think of everything that could be wrong.

“She shouldn’t be, we just fed her” Dani said, knitting her eyebrows as she looked back down at Lily who was still crying.

Jamie stood with her hands on her hips and a puzzled expression on her face as she wondered what else could be the issue.

“Shall I call Lola? I don’t want to disturb her, but I also don’t want her to keep crying, she looks so upset” Dani said softly as she carried on rocking Lily which didn’t seem to be easing her cries at all.

“Yeah” Jamie said softly, “Give her here while you call”.

Dani passed Lily over to Jamie then walked the short distance to the phone on the wall. Just as she had started to dial the number Lola had given to her, she heard what she thought was silence. Dani shook her head and concentrated for a second as her ears had to be deceiving her, Lily’s cries had filled the whole apartment for the past 30 minutes and it was impossible that she had just stopped in like 5 seconds. She put the phone back on the hook and turned around. Standing on the other side of the kitchen was Jamie who was rocking a suddenly silent Lily who had traded her high-pitched cries in favour of soft giggles whilst Jamie sang to her and stroked her cheek.

Dani just stood fixed to the spot as she watched with an open mouth what was going on in front of her. Slowly Dani made her way over to Jamie who had stopped her soothing singing for a second to look up at Dani.

“How?” Dani whispered as she looked down at Lily who had her eyes fixated on Jamie’s face.

“I don’t know, she just stopped when you gave her to me” Jamie said softly, not wanting to disrupt the peace that had fallen in their apartment for the first time in what felt like forever.

Dani just shook her head in disbelief as Jamie made her way to sit on the couch with Lily as her eyes were starting to drift shut.

Dani sat next to Jamie and put her arm around her shoulders and watched as Jamie continued to sing softly to Lily as she eventually gave into sleep.

The pair sat in silence for a few minutes, scared to breath too loudly out of fear of waking Lily who was now peacefully sleeping in Jamie’s arms.

“Have you ever, y’know, thought about it?” Jamie whispered as she turned her head to look at Dani.

Dani gave her a puzzled expression before Jamie elaborated, “Having a baby? Like you and me?”.

Dani’s eyebrows raised slightly as a small smile formed on her lips, “Yeah, I have actually, have you?”.

Jamie just nodded as she looked down at Lily who now had hold of her thumb. “I don’t really know how we would, but I would like to, y’know, have a baby with you, if you want to”.

“I’d love to have a baby with you” Dani whispered smiling widely as she placed a loving kiss on Jamie’s temple.

“Really?” Jamie asked as she turned her attention away from Lily and back to Dani.

“Yes, there’s nothing I would love more” Dani whispered before lovingly connecting their lips.

And there is was again, that all too familiar tingling sensation in her stomach and fluttering sensation in her heart.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> jamie tries to be there for dani on the first birthday of eddie's after his passing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you to A_Sapphic_Disaster for the prompt!

Jamie could sense that something was wrong, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was. Over the past few days, Dani had been quieter than usual, a little withdrawn and a lot clingier. Jamie would often find Dani staring off into space behind the counter of their flower shop as her hands aimlessly arrange the flowers in front of her. If Dani didn’t seek her out numerous times a day for a hug or a kiss, Jamie would have thought that the problem was her, but it didn’t seem to be. Their relationship was fine, and nothing had changed except that Dani had been following her around a little more over the past few days and holding on to her a little tighter than usual, but surely that was a positive sign, right, at least in terms of their relationship.

Jamie hadn’t mentioned anything to Dani as she didn’t want to make her discuss anything that she wasn’t comfortable with. They had told each other everything but Jamie still felt that Dani holding onto something and she didn’t want her to feel pressured to tell her, so Jamie refrained from asking. She would just wrap her arms around Dani and tell her that she was safe and if there was anything she wanted to talk about, she would always be there to listen to her. 

Jamie woke up like it was any other day and rolled over to face Dani. She buried her face into Dani’s chest and wrapped her arm around her waist and pulled her closer. This happened every morning as Jamie would always wake up first and use the extra few minutes of her time to snuggle into Dani before they had to get up for the day. However, what was unusual about this morning was that Dani was already awake.

“Good morning, sweetheart” Dani whispered, her voice a little hoarse but it was not laced with sleep, suggesting that she had been awake for a while already.

Jamie knitted her eyebrows together and looked up at Dani, “You’re awake”.

Dani just hummed in response and kissed Jamie’s forehead.

“Are you okay? Do you not feel well? Are you ill?” Jamie asked sitting up a little so that she could get a better look at Dani’s face to see if anything was wrong.

“I’m fine, the sun just woke me up, we forgot to close the blinds” Dani said wrapping her arm around Jamie and pulling the brunette back into her.

“The sun never usually bothers ya” Jamie said, a little confused as to why Dani was awake so early as Dani hated waking up early and would usually spend as many minutes in bed as she possibly could. However, Jamie gave into Dani’s pulling and allowed herself to snuggle back into Dani’s chest and close her eyes as she felt Dani’s fingers trail up and down her back.

Dani was still off that day and Jamie had noticed her staring into space a lot more than she had been doing over the past few days, so she decided to let her finish the day early. Maybe Dani was just tired from waking up so early and needed a nap, but Jamie sensed that it was something more than that.

“Hey” Jamie said softly as she walked up behind Dani who was stood behind the counter staring into space again, and placed her hands gently on her hips, “I can finish off down here, why don’t you go upstairs and have a rest?”.

“But” Dani said only to be cut off by Jamie.

“No ‘buts’, we’re not usually busy in the last hour anyway, go and have a rest, I’ll be up soon, yeah?” Jamie said softly as her hands rubbed gentle circles into Dani’s hips.

“Okay” Dani said softly before she nodded and turned to face Jamie, “But don’t be too long, I’ll miss you”.

Jamie just smiled widely and placed a loving kiss on Dani’s lips and watched her as she walked up to their apartment above the shop.

Jamie had worried about Dani ever since she had left and she wondered whether it was a good idea to let her finish early, at least if she was in the shop, Jamie would be able to keep an eye on her and be there for her if she needed anything.

Jamie sighed and looked up at the clock on the wall, 4:30pm which meant there was still half an hour to go before they closed. Jamie sighed again and walked over to the front door and locked it before turning the open sign to closed. They hadn’t had many customers for the past half an hour and thought that it was unlikely that they would have many more, so she decided to lock up and check to see if Dani needed anything.

Jamie opened the door to their apartment, shut it behind her and hung her jacket behind the door then kicked off her shoes. She knew Dani hated when she would just leave her shoes lying around near the front door, so she picked them up and took them into their bedroom to put away.

As she pushed the slightly ajar bedroom door open, she saw Dani sat on the edge of the bed with her back to the door.

“Hey” Jamie said softly as she placed her shoes by the door, but she didn’t walk any further into the room. She could sense that Dani was having a moment and she didn’t want to intrude, but she wanted to check if she was okay.

Dani shot around, clearly startled by Jamie’s presence and quickly put away whatever she had in her hand in a box beside her and shut the lid. “Hey, you’re back early” Dani said, trying to sound as normal as possible as she wiped her face with her hands before turning around.

When she did, she saw Jamie stood nervously in the doorway with a concerned look on her face. Jamie could clearly tell that Dani had been crying and wanted so badly to just wrap her in her arms and comfort her, but she also knew that Dani might need some space.

“Shop was a bit slow so thought I’d close up for the day. You okay?” Jamie asked softly.

Dani just nodded and smiled but she gave up after a few seconds as she saw that Jamie didn’t believe her. A single tear fell from her eye as her smile faded which only gave way to more.

Jamie cautiously walked closer to Dani who now had her head in her hands, trying to compose herself. “Can I touch you?” Jamie asked softly as she came to a halt a few steps away from Dani.

Dani just nodded so Jamie sat down beside her and put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her in gently.

Dani naturally fell into Jamie’s body as she finally gave in and cried into Jamie’s chest. Jamie wrapped her arms around the blonde and rubbed her back soothingly, hoping it would help calm her in some way.

A few minutes had passed before Dani’s cries slowed and eventually stopped but she never moved from the position that she was in. 

Jamie placed a soft kiss to the top of Dani’s head before saying softly “You know you can talk to me about anything don’t you? I'm always here to listen, you don’t have to keep anything bottled up if you don’t want to”.

Dani just sniffed and nodded before sitting up and looking at Jamie.

Her eyes were red and a little bloodshot and her cheeks were stained with tear marks, so Jamie gently lifted her hands up and wiped the tear marks away with her thumbs. “You’re so beautiful, do you know that?” Jamie said softly as she placed a soft tender kiss to Dani’s cheek. 

Dani’s eyes fluttered shut at Jamie’s actions and when she opened them again, she was met with kind and loving eyes as Jamie smiled softly at her.

“What’s wrong, baby?” Jamie asked softly as she took hold of Dani’s hands in hers.

Dani just took a deep breath and let it out shakily before she squeezed Jamie’s hands. “Today, erm, it would have been… Eddie’s birthday” Dani said softly, trying to hold back her tears.

Jamie silently cursed herself for not realising as she stoked her thumb over Dani’s hands soothingly. They hadn’t talked a lot about Eddie necessarily, he had only come up in a couple of their conversations over the past few months, but Jamie had remembered Dani saying something about Eddie’s birthday being around this time when they were still at Bly and she hated that fact that she had forgotten.

“Oh, baby” Jamie said wrapping her arms around Dani’s neck and pulling her into her, “Why didn’t you tell me?”.

“I don’t know. I think part of me thought that I’d be okay, but I think I also thought that you might not want to know or that it would be weird if I told you, I don’t know really” Dani whispered into Jamie’s neck as she buried her face into it.

“Dani” Jamie said pulling away from the hug so that she could look Dani in the eyes, “You can talk to me about anything, you know that don’t you? Whatever it is, you can tell me, and I’ll be there for you, always”.

Dani just smiled at Jamie’s words as Jamie wiped the tears that were falling from her eyes softly.

“Do you wanna talk about him? About Eddie?” Jamie asked, taking hold of Dani’s hands again, “I’d love to know more about him if you’d like me too”.

Dani just nodded and smiled as a few more tears fell from her eyes, “Yeah, I’d like that”.

Jamie moved and sat on her side of the bed with her back against the headboard and motioned for Dani to do the same.

Dani then picked up the box that she had quickly shut before when Jamie had entered the room and slowly removed its lid.

“We used to put all our stuff in here, like cinema tickets and photos and stuff, Eddie used to call it a memory box. He said we’d be able to look at it when we’re older and show our grandkids” Dani laughed a little at the comment as she picked up a photo of her and Eddie that was laying on top of the pile of stuff in the box. “I know it all got a little messy in the end, but he was still my best friend and I miss him a lot”.

Jamie just rested her hand on Dani’s thigh and stroked her thumb soothingly over the skin that she found there.

“He was so kind and clever and charming, and he was a great friend, he really was. I just wish it didn’t have to end the way it did, you know?”.

Jamie just nodded her head and whispered “Yeah, I know”.

A few moments of silence passed as Dani stared at the photo in her hand. 

“Can I have a look, if you don’t mind?” Jamie asked softly and Dani nodded and handed her the photo. “He was pretty handsome” Jamie said as she looked down at the photo of Dani and Eddie at what seemed to be taken at some sort of party.

“Yeah, he was, wasn’t he? All the girls liked him” Dani said as she leant her head on Jamie’s shoulder, “That was our engagement party actually”.

“Really? You looked stunning” Jamie said as she ran her finger over Dani’s dress in the picture.

Dani just laughed softly, “Thanks”. Dani then reached into the box and pulled out a strip of photobooth pictures and looked at them carefully.

“You looked happy” Jamie said softly as she studied the pictures too. They looked like they were taken just after Dani and Eddie had gotten engaged as Dani was holding up her hand with a ring on it.

“Yeah, I was” Dani whispered, “I got to spend every day with the one person in the whole world who I could trust. He was my best friend and I thought that that love would be enough, you know. I thought that I would just be able to love him like that until I felt the real thing but eventually, I knew that I would never love him like that, not like I do you”.

There was a moment of silence for a second as both women focused on the word that had just been spoken out loud that neither of them had said to the other yet.

“Did ya just say ya loved me, Poppins?” Jamie whispered light heartedly as she softly nudged Dani’s arms with her elbow.

Dani’s cheeks flushed and she buried her face into Jamie’s neck as she giggled, “Maybe”.

Jamie just chuckled as she took hold of Dani’s hand and brought it up to her lips to kiss the back of it, “Think I might be feeling the same way too, Poppins”.

The pair laid in a comfortable silence for a few minutes before Jamie said, “Do you want to maybe do something to mark the day, we could light a candle or get a bunch of flowers or something for him maybe? Whatever ya want”.

“That would be nice, yeah” Dani said softly as she thought about the idea. “He really liked sunflowers so maybe we could get him some?”.

“Sounds good” Jamie said as she got of bed and hold her hand out for Dani to take.

“Thank you, for doing this. I know it must be hard to hear about him and our life together, but it means a lot that you listened” Dani said softly as she stopped just before they reached the bedroom door which caused Jamie to turn around and look at her.

“Any time, Poppins” Jamie said as she wrapped her arms around Dani and pulled her close to her, “And I thought it would be hard to hear about him, but it wasn’t really, he seemed like a great guy, I’m just sorry it ended how it did. But you know you can talk to me about him anytime you want to, I know it must be hard for you, you lost your best friend Dani, and if talking about him helps, then I’m all ears”.

Dani let a few tears fall and hit Jamie’s t-shirt as she clung tighter to Jamie’s body, “You’re amazing, do you know that?” Dani whispered as she kissed Jamie’s cheek, “I’m so lucky I found you”.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> dani tries to perfect the art of making a good cup of tea

Dani couldn’t make tea; it was a well-known fact. She didn’t just make bad tea either, it was terrible tea. Those at Bly who had had the ‘pleasure’ of being made a cup of tea by Dani could attest to how awful it was and non-more so than Jamie. 

It had been just over a year since they had left Bly and had started their life together in Vermont. Although Jamie had banned Dani from touching her tea bags in the back of the cupboard, there was still the odd occasion when Dani would try her best and attempt to make the perfect cup of tea for her girlfriend. 

“Dani” Jamie said softly as she carefully spat the liquid back into the cup.

“Still bad, huh?” Dani said, the disappointment evident in her voice.

“Yeah…” Jamie trailed off as she gave the cup back to Dani who drank it instead.

Jamie couldn’t help the loving smile that graced her lips every time Dani tried to make her a cup of tea though. Although she would wince at the taste and spit the drink back into the cup, her heart would swell with love and admiration for the blonde who had tried so hard to please her.

“Can you teach me again please, I think I’m almost there” Dani said as she placed her hands on Jamie’s thighs and rubbed her hands in small circular movements, feeling the goosebumps rise underneath her touch.

“Ya said that last time, Poppins, and the time before that, and the time before that and-” Jamie said until she was cut off by Dani placing her soft lips onto of hers and kissing her lovingly.

“Please?” Dani whispered against Jamie’s lips as she pouted slightly and flashed Jamie her best puppy dog eyes.

“Fine” Jamie huffed but there was no annoyance behind her words, she loved teaching Dani how to make tea, even if it reaped her very few rewards.

Dani squealed excitedly and pulled Jamie up off the bed and towards the kitchen.

Jamie stood behind Dani with her hands on her waist, kissing her neck softly as they waited her the kettle to boil. 

“Stop” Dani giggled as she squirmed underneath Jamie’s light ticklish fingers that were dancing around on her bare stomach as Jamie’s hands had trailed up under her nightshirt.

“Okay, so ya wanna put the tea bag in the cup then sugar if you want it. Please measure in teaspoons, none of that pouring the sugar straight in from the jar shit you do” Jamie said chuckling as she stopped her tickling in favour of her thumb lightly caressing Dani’s skin on her stomach as she rested her chin on Dani’s shoulder so that she could observe her actions.

Dani just laughed as she knew she had a bad habit of just tipping some sugar out of the jar and into the cup and hoping for the best. “What’s next? Water?” Dani asked as she turned to look at Jamie who nodded and connected their lips.

The kettle whistled just in time and the shock of the sound caused them to jump a little and pull away from the kiss. Dani then proceeded to fill the cups up with boiling water until Jamie told her to stop.

“Gotta leave enough room for the milk” Jamie whispered as she couldn’t help but place soft light kisses along Dani’s neck as she filled up the cups.

“Stir now?” Dani asked as she took out a teaspoon from the draw next to them.

Jamie just hummed in her ear as she trailed more kisses up and down Dani’s neck and ran her hands across her stomach under her night shirt.

Dani did as she was told and stirred the tea. This was the part she always got wrong as she would either leave the tea bag in too long to brew or not long enough.

“You’re so beautiful” Jamie whispered into Dani’s ear as her thumbs grazed her breasts and her lips nipped Dani’s ear lobe.

A quiet moan escaped Dani’s mouth at her girlfriend’s actions which caused her to giggle. “Stop, concentrate Jamie otherwise I’m going to make you a shit cup of tea again” Dani said, straightening her body up that had fallen into Jamie’s a little and clearing her throat.

“Don’t mind really, I’d much rather taste something else, something I know I will enjoy” Jamie whispered against Dani’s ear as her fingers trailed lower and lower down Dani’s abdomen. 

“Jamie” Dani giggled as she placed her hands on top of Jamie’s to stop her movements, “Just lets finish making this, then you can do whatever you want to me”.

“Whatever I want, eh?” Jamie chuckled as she placed another couple of soft kisses along Dani’s neck before saying, “Fine, let’s carry on then”.

“So, it should be brewed by now” Jamie said as she put her hands on top of Dani’s and guided them to the cup in front of them on the counter. “So, strain the tea bag and throw it away” Jamie said as she moved Dani’s hands to do the actions that she had just said out loud.

Dani giggled softly as Jamie controlled her movements. This was the part Dani especially liked about Jamie teaching her how to make a cup of tea. Jamie would always at some point take her hands softly in hers and move them around gently as if they were one person. 

Jamie also especially liked this part too as she knew that Dani enjoyed it and because it would always lead them to the exact same place every single time; the bedroom.

“Now for the milk. Not too much, just enough to turn it a nice tan colour” Jamie said as she helped Dani pour in the right amount of milk. “Just like that” Jamie said as she helped Dani stir the contents of the cup until the right colour emerged.

“You make it look so easy” Dani said laughing softly as Jamie placed a small kiss onto her cheek.

Jamie then let go of Dani’s hands so that Dani could pick the cup up and turn around to give it to her.

Dani blew on the hot liquid for a few seconds before she handed it to Jamie, “Here baby, try it”.

Jamie took the cup off of Dani and carefully sipped a little of the hot liquid. “Perfect” Jamie said letting out a little content sigh as a smile appeared on her lips. She then handed the cup back to Dani so that she could have a taste too.

“Tastes the same as the one I made you this morning” Dani said giggling after she had had a sip.

Jamie just shook her head and laughed. “Now, let’s get back to the part where I can do whatever I want to ya, yeah?” Jamie said with a smirk on her lips as she guided Dani’s hand to the counter to place to cup down before she picked Dani up and sat her on the counter as well.

Dani practiced her tea making skills whenever she could, and she could sense that she was getting close to perfecting the drink. The past 3 times that she had made Jamie a cup of tea, she had actually swallowed the liquid instead of spitting it back out into the cup which was progress and honeslty Dani was happy with that but she did want to perfect it for her.

“Okay, so I think this might be it” Dani said one morning as she handed Jamie the cup that she had carefully carried from the kitchen and into their bedroom, ready for it to be inspected.

“Really?” Jamie asked, narrowing her eyes a little at Dani who nodded her head confidently.

“Go on, try it” Dani said a little impatiently as she sat on her knees looking eagerly at Jamie’s facial expressions.

Jaime took a sip and then swallowed it which made Dani smile as she knew that the drink couldn’t be that bad. Jamie’s face gave nothing away for a few seconds which only added to Dani’s anticipation.

“That’s it” Jamie said flashing Dani a proud little smirk.

“Really?” Dani asked as a wide toothy grin appeared on her face.

“Really” Jamie said as she took another sip of the drink and placed it on her nightstand.

Dani let out an excited squeal and shot forward to wrap her arms around Jamie.

Jamie just laughed as Dani peppered her face and neck with soft kisses as she pushed her down onto the bed.

“Shouldn’t I be the one doing that to you, not the other way around?” Jamie chuckled as Dani’s kisses stopped.

“I don’t care, I’m just so happy” Dani said smiling widely as she sat up to look at Jamie.

“Proud of ya, Poppins. Never thought you’d ever get here after that first cup of tea ya made me back in Bly” Jamie said chuckling as she tickled Dani’s sides. “Now come here and claim your reward”.

Dani let out another excited squeal as Jamie flipped her over so that Jamie was on top of her holding her arms above her head as she kissed her neck.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> jamie's habit of finding things on the street and wanting to save them

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just my little take on what "found it on the street, wanted to save it" might have meant to jamie when dani proposed. maybe partly inspired by amelia eve finding things on the street and saving them too! hope you enjoy it!! :)

Jamie had a habit of finding things on the street and saving them. Most of the items that she would bring home were plants however, on the odd occasion she would bring home furniture or books and one time even a kitten. 

Jamie had found the kitten hidden in a cardboard box next to lovely chest of draws that she was eyeing up that she thought would look lovely in her and Dani’s bedroom. However, the chest of draws was discarded and left in favour of the small black kitten who was looking up at Jamie longingly.

Dani was used to finding random things in their apartment that Jamie had brought home and never batted an eyelid at what she found, she had just accepted that that was what Jamie would do. Jamie had told her that she had always done it, ever since she was a kid. Jamie didn’t have a lot of money so she would take what she could find. That’s how most of the things in her flat in Bly were acquired and she couldn’t help but do the same now. Her and Dani didn’t exactly have a lot of money between them either, so Jamie’s skills had come in quite handy. As a result, they had two nightstands, a living room table, a record player, numerous books and now a cat.

Dani’s heart couldn’t help but swell when she saw Jamie walk through their front door with a kitten cradled in her arms.

“Found it on the street, wanted to save it” Jamie chuckled as she handed Dani the kitten.

Dani laughed softly at the line Jamie always used every time she brought something home and reached out the take the kitten.

Dani gave it some warm milk and wrapped it up in a blanket before her and Jamie took it to the vets to get checked out. The kitten was healthy, just a little underweight which would be corrected with a healthy diet. They also found out that the kitten was a boy and decided to name him Milo. There was an unspoken agreement between Dani and Jamie when Jamie brought Milo home that they would keep him. There was no conversation or questions to be asked, Jamie had found him, so they were going to keep him, just like everything else that Jamie had brought home.

Soon enough, the weight which Milo had lost soon returned and he grew quicker than they would have imagined. He was no longer the timid skinny cat that Jamie had found abandoned but a strong confident cat who loved nothing more than to cuddle with them at every chance he got. 

Jamie’s little habit had also been picked up by Dani. The first time it had happened, she had been walking home after picking up their lunch order from a local café. She came across a pile of boxes on the side of the street that were filled with old clothes and blankets but next to the boxes was a plant. It was sat in a cracked pot with its leaves hung low and yellowing. Dani instantly picked it up without any hesitation and carried it home, knowing full well that Jamie would be able to revive it. 

“What ya got there then?” Jamie asked when Dani walked through the door of their flower shop.

“Found it on the street, wanted to save it” Dani said softly, unable to stop the smile that spread across her face as she uttered Jamie’s infamous words.

Jamie smirked and walked over to Dani to take the plant off of her. “I'm impressed, Poppins” Jamie chuckled as she kissed Dani’s cheek before taking the plant over to the counter to inspect it.

Dani watched carefully as she Jamie pulled the plant out of its broken pot and went straight to inspect its roots which were tangled in the plastic pot that it was sitting in. Jamie then disappeared into the back office for a few minutes before returning with the plant in a brand-new pot with brand-new soil. 

“Good save, Poppins, I don’t think it would have lasted much longer out there in the cold” Jamie said handing the plant back to Dani. “You can put it in the window if you want, should get enough sun there I think to keep it warm”.

Dani did as Jamie had said and placed the plant proudly in the front window of their shop.

A few days later, it had started to pick up and the yellowing leaves now stood tall as they slowly began to turn back to green.

The feeling of accomplishment that Dani had felt that day when she rescued the plant had stuck with her and soon enough, she was exactly the same as Jamie, saving whatever she could find off the streets of Vermont.

Dani had brought home a few tables and chairs, a handful of books and numerous plants. Jamie would chuckle every single time that Dani brought something new home and would always help her to revive the dying plants or beat-up furniture. 

As well as doing it because Jamie did it, Dani also saved things of the street because in some ways she related to the items that she found. She had felt lost and alone and slightly withered before Jamie found her, picked her up and took her home to care for. Jamie had saved her in so many ways and she had told her so. Jamie had repotted her, gave her some water and love and watched her bloom just like with all the other plants that they had found and saved together.

So, when the day finally came, 6 years after they had moved to Vermont, that Dani had found a plant on the side of the street in need of saving and buried a Claddagh ring in its roots in hopes of Jamie agreeing to be her wife, she knew what the gesture would mean to Jamie, she knew what it would symbolise. That she was scared and alone and in need of some love before Jamie had come along and done just that, she had loved her with everything that she had and made her bloom and Dani had done the same thing in return.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> dani meets drunk jamie for the first time

“Okay” Dani said softly as she climbed the stairs up to their apartment while dragging a slightly unstable Jamie up with her, “Let’s get you to bed, baby”.

Owen had come to visit them for the first time since they had moved to Vermont. They had taken him sightseeing for the day but somehow had ended up in a bar down the street from their apartment and hadn’t left until 1am. Dani wasn’t the biggest drinker in the world as she didn’t like the feeling of losing control in a strange environment that much, so she only had a handful of beers throughout the night. It was also a conscious decision as she felt that at least one of them should to be the responsible one for the night, given how Jamie and Owen were acting.

Jamie on the other hand had more than a handful of beers. Her and Owen had been downing shots and chugging beers like it was nothing and Dani hadn’t ever really seen Jamie like that before. Of course, they gone out together a few times together and had a couple of beers or if they went to a restaurant, they would have a few glasses of wine, so she had seen tipsy Jamie before, but she had never gotten to see drunk Jamie before.

“I’m fine, I've got it” Jamie said as Dani held onto her waist and helped her up the stairs then propped her against the wall whilst she opened their apartment door.

“I’m not even that drunk, I really don’t see why you’re carrying me like a child” Jamie said chuckling as she stumbled past Dani and into their apartment to prove that she could walk unaided.

Dani just laughed at her and followed behind her then closed the door and locked it. 

“Fuck sake” Jamie groaned as she struggled to take her leather jacket off as one of the buckles had gotten caught in her belt somehow.

“Here” Dani giggled as she placed her hands firmly onto Jamie’s hips to stop her erratic arm movements and her body from turning around in circles, “Let me help you, baby, the buckle got caught”. 

Jamie huffed as she let Dani untangle the jacket for her and take it off.

“There you go, is that better?” Dani asked as she hung the jacket behind the door and turned back to face Jamie so that she could kiss her lips.

“It is, yeah” Jamie said smirking a little and tilting her head, “Would be even better if ya kept going though, I still have too many layers on for what I want to do to ya tonight”.

Dani just laughed and placed a quick kiss on Jamie’s cheek before walking away and into the kitchen to get them a glass of water each. She knew what happened every time Jamie had something to drink and she usually loved the way the nights would end after a glass or two of wine, but she knew that Jamie was in no fit state to do any of that tonight, she could barely even stand up.

“Guess I’ll just have to undress meself then” Dani heard as she walked into the kitchen and filled two glasses full of water. She also filled the kettle and put it on the stove just in case Jamie wanted a cup of tea or a coffee to try and help sober up.

Dani walked back into the hallway to see a half-naked Jamie struggling to shimmy out of her jeans.

“Ya like the view?” Jamie asked with a smirk on her lips as she turned around to see Dani stood staring at her.

“I do yeah baby, looks like you could use some help though” Dani said laughing as she handed a glass to Jamie who immediately finished it in one go like it was a beer that she had just been chugging an hour ago with Owen.

“Let's get you to the sofa so I can help you” Dani said as she wrapped an arm around Jamie’s waist and lead her towards the sofa. 

“You’re so hot” Jamie mumbled as Dani sat her down so that she could remove her boots and help her take her jeans off.

Dani just laughed at the comment as she untied Jamie’s laces and gently pulled her boots off and placed them to the side of the sofa so that they wouldn’t trip over them later.

“You’re really hot y’know” Jamie said again as Dani stood her up and helped to pull her jeans down her legs.

“You already said that” Dani chuckled as she sat Jamie back down so that she could pull her feet out of the denim.

“I know, I didn’t know if ya heard me or not, you didn’t reply” Jamie said as she watched Dani’s movements with half-closed eyes.

“Thank you” Dani said chuckling, “You’re hot too, sweetheart”.

“Really? I'm not as hot as you though, you’re stunning” Jamie continued as she looked Dani up and down with lust filled eyes.

“You’re so cute” Dani said as she kissed Jamie’s cheek then helped her to stand up, “Let’s get you into bed, shall we? The water should be boiled in a minute so I can make you a cup of tea if you want?”.

“Aren’t we having sex? I really want to have sex with you” Jamie said, frowning a little as Dani helped her towards the bedroom “I wanna give you the best night of your life”.

“I don’t think you’re in any fit state to do that, baby, but we can tomorrow if you still want too” Dani said smiling softly at Jamie whose hair was wild and whose mascara and eyeliner were smudged slightly as she kept on rubbing her tired eyes.

“I promise you Dani, I am more than capable. Just let me show you” Jamie mumbled as she reached out to try and pull Dani’s t-shirt off of her as Dani sat her down on the edge of the bed.

“I’ll be back in a minute, let me make you a drink” Dani whispered before placing a soft kiss to Jamie’s forehead as she took hold of Jamie’s wondering hands and placing them gently on her lap.

Dani came back with a cup of tea to find Jamie still sat in the same position with her head low as she mumbled to herself. 

Jamie’s face lit up when she saw Dani walking towards her.

“Here, baby, I made you a cup of tea. It’s a little hot at the moment so maybe wait a few minutes before you drink it” Dani said as she placed the cup on Jamie’s nightstand.

Jamie stood up to meet Dani once she had put the cup down. “I love you” Jamie mumbled as she wrapped her arms around Dani’s neck and began placing sloppy kisses along her jawline.

“I love you too, baby” Dani giggled as she wrapped her arms around Jamie’s waist which was more to just hold the woman up if anything.

“Let’s get you a t-shirt to put of shall we, I don’t want you to be getting sick” Dani said as she slowly walked a naked Jamie towards their chest of draws.

Jamie just followed Dani’s lead as she continued placing sloppy kisses all over Dani’s neck and cheek.

Dani couldn’t help but find this side of Jamie adorable. Jamie wasn’t usually so clingy, but Dani liked it, it was cute to see how Jamie really felt about her. Maybe minus the very wet kisses that were being plastered onto her cheek, but they were Jamie’s wet sloppy kisses, so it didn’t really matter, she kind of liked them if she was being honest with herself.

“Arms up for me baby” Dani said as she held out one of her nightshirts to put on Jamie. Jamie usually slept in a t-shirt and a pair of shorts but Dani thought putting shorts on Jamie in this state would be a little hard, so she just opted for one of her nightshirts instead.

“There you go, now let’s get you into bed” Dani said as she shuffled her and Jamie back towards to bed. Jamie was still insistent on sloppily kissing Dani and trailing her hands up and down her torso which made the short walk quite difficult.

Dani sat Jamie down on the edge of the bed, but Jamie kept her hold on Dani and dragged her down with her so that Dani was on top of her. 

Dani giggled as she slowly fell and landed on top of Jamie who was flashing her a lazy smirk.

“Was that your plan all along?” Dani said laughing as Jamie’s lips found their way back to her neck again.

Jamie just hummed and sucked on Dani’s neck and bit down lightly.

“Okay, okay, lets actually get you into bed now” Dani said, prising herself out of Jamie’s grip then helping her under the covers. Although Dani was enjoying what Jamie was doing to her, she knew that it was going nowhere, and she didn’t want to let herself get too worked up only for Jamie to fall asleep.

“Aren’t ya joining me?” Jamie asked pouting a little.

“In a second baby, just let me get changed then I’ll be right there” Dani said as she picked out another night shirt and quickly got changed. She could feel Jamie’s tired gaze watching her as she undressed. 

“I’m gunna make ya feel so good baby. It's gunna be the best night of ya life, I promise” Jamie mumbled as her eyes slowly began to close.

“I’m sure it will be baby” Dani giggled as she watched Jamie try and fight the overwhelming urge to fall asleep so that she could watch her take her clothes off.

Dani crawled into their bed a few minutes later and wrapped her arms around Jamie’s body and pulled her in closer to her.

“Hope ya ready for the best night of ya life” Jamie mumbled as a small smirk formed on her lips as her hand lazily started to stroke the inside of her thigh.

“I sure am baby” Dani whispered as she kissed Jamie’s cheek lovingly and nuzzled her face into Jamie’s neck.

A few seconds later, Jamie’s soft snores filled the room and Dani smiled into the side of Jamie’s neck as she pulled her closer. “Goodnight, sweetheart, I love you” Dani whispered before letting sleep consume her too.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> jamie plays her guitar for dani after dani spends her first night at jamie's flat

Music had always been an integral part of Dani’s mornings. She would switch the radio on that sat on her dresser every morning when she was a teenager as she was getting ready for school and dance along to whatever it was playing. The same tiny radio had accompanied her when she had moved out of her Mother’s house and in with Eddie. It was placed on the kitchen windowsill and every morning it would fill the room with soft light music as Dani got ready for the day. The same radio had been packed in her suitcase when she had relocated across the pond and it was a crucial companion on many lonely nights in her hostel room. The same radio now sat on her dresser in her room in Bly and it helped shake the sleep from her body every morning. However, she did miss the sound of music flowing out of the slightly tinny speakers when she spent the night elsewhere and didn’t have it to accompany her in the morning.

Dani groaned softly as she started to wake up. She opened her eyes a little and her body instantly tensed up at the unfamiliar environment that she awoke in. However, slowly the images from last night ran though her mind and her body relaxed as she realised where she was and whose sheets she was tangled in. 

Jamie had taken Dani up on her offer of going to the pub in Bly. It had been a few days since Dani had asked Jamie to stay for the night again, even though she had already slept over the night before. Jamie had initially said no as she didn’t want to come on too strong or somehow ruin what they already had but there was something about the longing in Dani’s eyes that had told it her was alright to stay and so she did.

The next few nights were spent alone in seemingly larger and emptier beds than they had once known but they still got to spend time with each other at work. Dani had woken up early each morning so that she could go and say hi to Jamie and sit with her for a while before the kids got up. They had fallen into a comfortable little routine where Jamie would bring a flask of tea each morning and potter around her greenhouse whilst Dani sat and watched her as she drank her morning coffee. It was surprising how much they got to know about each other through those early morning chats. They were light-hearted and easy, but they also revealed a lot about the other. 

One morning Jamie had suggested going to the pub after work with Dani if she wanted to as it was her day off the next day, so it didn’t matter if she got a little tipsy. Jamie’s seemingly innocent comment also had a not-so-innocent undertone as she knew that Dani would likely stay the night at her flat, but she hadn't wanted to openly suggest the idea to the blonde, just in case she was expecting too much from her. Dani had happily agreed and also picked up on the hidden meaning behind Jamie’s comment and looked forward to where the night would take them.

Jamie drove Dani to the only pub in town after work and they spent a few hours sat together in a cosy booth at the back of the pub talking and drinking. It was surprising how fast the time passed when they were left alone to talk. It had felt like 10 minutes, but they had actually been sat there for 2 hours before Dani had asked if it would be okay to see Jamie’s flat. Once Jamie had given Dani a quick tour, one thing had led to another and now Dani was waking up a little disorientated in Jamie’s bed the next morning.

“Morning” Dani heard as she stretched a little under the covers so she turned around to look up at where the voice had come from. 

“Good morning” Dani said smiling softly as her eyes met Jamie who was walking over to her.

“I made ya a cup of tea if you want it” Jamie said as she sat down on the edge of the bed next to where Dani was laid with two cups of tea.

“Oh, thanks” Dani said smiling brightly as she sat up and wrapped the duvet around her naked form before taking a cup from Jamie.

“Sleep well?” Jamie asked quietly before taking a sip of the beverage.

Dani nodded as she took a sip too, “Yeah I did thank you, your beds a lot comfier than mine”.

Jamie just chuckled, “Yeah it is, isn’t it? I didn’t want to say anything before but your beds kinda hard”.

Dani just laughed softly and nodded her head. She hadn't noticed at first as the mattress was significantly better than the one in the hostel that she had lived in for 6 months but after spending a night in Jamie’s bed, she could tell that the mattress on her current bed wasn’t softest in the world.

“Maybe I should spend more nights here then” Dani said as she quickly looked at Jamie with a playful smile on her lips before she quickly looked away again.

Jamie’s eyebrows shot up in surprise at the confidence in Dani’s voice as she had said the comment.

“You know, don’t want a bad back in the future” Dani said giggling.

“Right, don’t want ya to have a bad back do we now, Poppins” Jamie winked before she lightly nudged Dani’s shoulder with her own.

A comfortable silence fell over the pair as they sat and drank their teas. Once Dani had finished hers, she placed the empty cup on the nightstand and leant down to collect Jamie’s t-shirt off the floor and slip it over her head. She then stood up and tried to locate her underwear. 

“Top draw if you’re looking for some underwear. I’ve got some shorts in there if ya want to borrow a pair, not sure where yours ended up” Jamie said chuckling a little as she continued drinking her tea.

“Oh, thanks” Dani said smiling widely at Jamie who was still sitting on the edge of the bed wearing a vest top and a pair of shorts.

Dani found a pair and slipped them on as she looked around the small room. She hadn't got much of a chance last night to have a good look around Jamie’s bedroom, but it was nice and cosy. There were a few posters and photos on the walls and a record player in the corner with a box of records next to it. In the same corner, an old guitar stood leant against the wall.

“Can you play?” Dani asked as she motioned towards the guitar with her head.

“A little” Jamie replied as she placed her empty cup of the nightstand next to Dani’s.

“Will you show me?” Dani asked softly as she smiled at Jamie. She wouldn’t push Jamie on the matter if she didn’t want to play for her, but she hoped that one day Jamie would be comfortable enough around her to let her listen to her.

There was a short pause before Jamie smiled softly and said, “If ya want me too, Poppins, but I’m gonna warn ya, I'm not very good”.

“I'm sure you’re great, Jamie” Dani said shyly as she sat down on the bed with her back against the headboard whilst Jamie got up and picked up the guitar.

Dani patted the space in front of her on the bed excitedly and Jamie just let out a light chuckle and bowed her head as she crawled on the bed.

“I don’t think I can look at ya whilst I play, your face kinda distracts me too much” Jamie said chuckling slightly as she sat on her knees in front of Dani who now had a heavy blush on her cheeks from hearing the comment.

“Turn around then” Dani said softly as she opened her arms and moved her legs a little.

Jamie just laughed and shook her head softly as she turned around and sat between Dani’s legs.

Dani arms naturally found their way around Jamie’s waist and she pulled her closer. 

“Is that better?” Dani asked as rested her chin on Jamie’s shoulder.

“Yeah” Jamie chuckled as she couldn’t help but be slightly distracted by Dani’s hands resting on her stomach, “Promise me you won't laugh”.

“I promise” Dani said before placing a soft kiss to Jamie’s cheek.

Jamie rested the guitar on her thigh and shifted a little to get comfy before she started to play.

It was a slow and relaxing melody and Dani’s eye lids drifted shut as she listened and focused on the soothing sound. 

However, after a minute or so, the melody was cut short as Jamie stopped playing so that she could turn and look at Dani. 

“Why’d you stop?” Dani asked as she opened her eyes at the silence that had fallen over the room.

Jamie just shrugged, “Wanted to know what you thought”.

“I think you’re incredible, Jamie. I wish you could come and play for me every morning. You definitely sound better than my little radio” Dani said softly as she placed a tender kiss to Jamie’s lips.

“Wish I could wake up next to ya every morning, Poppins, then I wouldn’t mind playing for ya. I wouldn’t even mind just doing this really either, I quite like it” Jamie said quietly as she placed her hand on Dani’s leg and stroked small circles into the soft skin that she found there.

“Me too” Dani said shyly as she kissed Jamie’s shoulder.

“Which part?” Jamie chuckled.

“Both” Dani giggled as her arms tightened around Jamie’s waist as she peppered her neck with a few soft kisses.

“Poppins, you flirtin’ again?” Jamie chuckled as she leant further back into Dani’s front.

“Maybe, now carry on, I was enjoying it” Dani said as she leant back against the headboard and loosened her grip around Jamie’s waist.

“Your wish is my command, Poppins” Jamie said smirking as she shifted a little before continuing to play.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> jamie lets dani have a lie in whilst she tends to their newborn baby

‘How did I get so lucky?’ was a phrase that Dani Clayton had often asked herself multiple times a day ever since she had met Jamie and it had only increased ever since their daughter had entered the world.

It had been 5 years since Dani and Jamie had left Bly and started their life together in Vermont when they had decided to visit a doctor who specialised in helping same-sex couples have children. It had only taken two visits to the clinic for the two tiny lines on the pregnancy test to appear. That night as Jamie laid with her head resting on Dani’s chest as their interlocked hands rested on Dani’s stomach that was now carrying their child, Dani had asked herself ‘how did I get so lucky?’.

Jamie waited hand and foot on Dani throughout her pregnancy which only caused Dani to repeat the same phrase constantly to herself; ‘How did I get so lucky?’. Jamie massaged her feet every night, put up with her constant tossing and turning in bed and would try her best to get Dani the food that she was craving, no matter the time of day. Jamie had never hesitated to jump into her truck at 3am to drive to a local fast-food place to get Dani whatever she was craving at the time and she would come back with a paper bag, place it in Dani’s lap as she gave her a kiss on the lips before settling back into bed beside her as she drifted off to sleep again whilst Dani satisfied her craving.

Dani also asked herself ‘how did I get so lucky?’ multiple times whilst Jamie sat through her 22-hour labour with her. Jamie never left Dani’s side, not once. She held her hand and rubbed her back and did everything that she could to try and comfort Dani and make the experience a little less painful. She cracked jokes to try and lighten the mood a little and make Dani laugh, she wrapped her up tight in her arms when Dani needed some extra comfort and she let Dani squeeze her hand as tight as she wanted, even if she thought that she would leave the room with a baby and a few broken bones. The only thing that mattered in that moment was Dani.

‘How did I get so lucky’ was also whispered with a voice thickly laced with sleep at 3am when Jamie insisted on letting Dani sleep whilst she tended to their daughter. Jamie did as much as she could, any time of day. If their daughter needed changing, Jamie was there to do it. If their daughter needed burping, Jamie was there to do it. And if their daughter just wanted a little company, Jamie was also there to do it. She hardly let her side, or Dani’s for that matter. If any of them needed anything, Jamie was there ready and waiting and always willing to lend a hand.

It had been a month since their daughter James, had finally made her entrance into the world and everything had been going well so far. They had fallen into a loose routine around James’ needs, always putting her first and themselves second. They napped when they could, taking it in turns to get an hour of two during the day and although they were running on what felt like zero hours of sleep, they were thoroughly enjoying Motherhood.

Dani woke up that morning and reached out, like she always did, to try and find Jamie but her hand fell onto cold sheets instead of soft warm skin. Some mornings Jamie would sit in bed next to Dani and wait for her to wake up whilst she sat with James in her arms. Other mornings Jamie would sit with James somewhere else in their apartment, usually in the nursery on the rocking chair whilst she sang and talked to James or read her a story.

Dani opened her eyes which were met with bright sunlight filling the room which suggested that she had been asleep longer that she usually is. She sat up and stretched her arms before looking at the clock on the bedside table which read 9:04am. Dani narrowed her eyes and shook her head in disbelief, she had hardly slept past 6am ever since James was born so was a little disorientated as she made her way across the hallway and into the nursery. Dani poked her head around the door, but the cot was empty and so was the rocking chair, so Dani wondered down the hallway in search of Jamie and James.

“And someone kept us awake aaaall night long” Dani heard as she padded down the wooden hallway. She loved Jamie’s cute baby voice and it always managed to put a smile on her face as well as James’.

“Was that you? I think it was” Dani heard Jamie continue. 

Dani stopped just before she reached the main living area and peered around the corner to see Jamie arranging some flowers on the table with one hand whilst holding James with the other.

“Do you think Mommy will like these, Jamie?” Jamie asked as she looked down at James in her arms as if waiting for her response. Jamie nodded her head after a second or so of silence and replied, “I do too, James. Now let’s make some breakfast, Mommy should be awake soon”. With that Jamie made her way into the kitchen, bouncing a little as she went as if to soothe James.

As Jamie moved away from the kitchen table, Dani got a better view of the vase of flowers sat on top of it. They were just a bunch of simple daffodils, but their bright yellow flowers lit up the whole room. Dani adored springtime and loved to see the sun start to come out of hiding and the flowers start to bloom. 

Dani then made her way through the main living area and into the kitchen. 

“How are my two favourite girls doing this morning?” Dani asked as she wrapped her arms around Jamie’s waist and rested her chin on her shoulder so that she could see James over it.

“We’re good I think, aren’t we sweetheart?” Jamie said as she looked down at James who was now fixated on Dani and reaching for her.

“Good” Dani said smiling widely as she kissed Jamie’s cheek before letting go of her waist and reaching for James.

Jamie happily handed their daughter to her as she asked, “How did you sleep, baby?”.

“Good, so good actually. Can you believe it’s 9am? I think that’s the best sleep I’ve had in ages” Dani said smiling widely at both having a great sleep and holding James in her arms who was now holding onto her shirt.

“Good” Jamie said smiling softly at the sight in front of her. Dani was holding James in her arms and peppering light kisses all over her tiny little body.

“Oh, I’ve missed you so much baby, I really have” Dani said in her baby voice as she carried on kissing James.

“She’s missed you too” Jamie said as she turned back to the kitchen counter, “We both have actually. I managed to wake up just before the 6am cries for attention and milk so she wouldn’t wake you”.

“You didn’t have to do that” Dani said looking up at Jamie who was busy plating something up.

“It’s fine, I wanted to. Besides, you needed the extra sleep” Jamie said flashing Dani a quick smile over her shoulder.

“But what about you, you’ve been up all night with her too” Dani said as she stroked James’ cheek softly.

“I’m fine, can always catch a few hours this afternoon or something” Jamie said as she turned around fully so that she could look at Dani and their daughter again. It was a sight that she knew she would never get tired of.

“Have you fed her yet?” Dani asked as she closed the gap between them so that she could kiss Jamie’s lips.

“No, I did the 6am feed but not the 9am one. I was waiting for you, your milks better than mine” Jamie said chuckling as she turned around to pick up two plates then made her way over to the kitchen table, “Made ya breakfast if you want some, it’s your favourite, hot cross buns. We bought you some this morning from the store”.

“You went to the store, especially for these?” Dani said smiling softly as she and James took a seat at the table.

“Sure did, we know how much ya like em so I thought we’d surprise you. Got ya some daffodils from downstairs too. It’s the first day of spring and James is 1 month old today so, I thought we should celebrate” Jamie said as she took a seat next to Dani.

“You’re both so cute, do you know that? I’m the luckiest person in the whole wide world” Dani said as she smiled brightly then placed a soft kiss on the top of James’ head and one on Jamie’s lips, “I love you both so much”.

“Well, we love you too” Jamie said softly as she placed her hand on Dani’s cheek before she kissed her lips lovingly.

James’ soft cries pulled them away from the kiss and they both laughed.

“Think she’s hungry” Jamie chuckled as she kissed the top of James’ head.

“Yeah, think she is” Dani said laughing as she handed James to Jamie so that she could unbutton her shirt.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> jamie hates valentine's day and dani tries to convince her otherwise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy valentine's day everyone, I hope you're all having a good day regardless of if you're celebrating the day or not!! hope you enjoy my take on dani and jamie's first valentine's day together!! :)

“I hate Valentine’s Day” Jamie grumbled as she struggled to hang a ‘Happy Valentine’s Day’ banner in their flower shop window.

“I quite like it” Dani commented with a giggle as she held onto the bottom of the ladders that Jamie was stood on.

This was Dani and Jamie’s first Valentine’s Day together and neither of them knew exactly how they were going to celebrate it. Jamie hated the holiday as it was just an excuse for stores to sell overpriced roses and boxes of chocolate that men would buy the day before as some half-hearted gesture to their wives. Although she now owned a flower shop, which was exactly the kind of business that would profit off of the holiday, Jamie was adamant that they would not increase their prices for the day.

Dani on the other hand, loved Valentine’s Day. It wasn’t her favourite holiday, but she did love the idea of the day and what it symbolised. Dani loved love and for her the day was all about expressing her love to the ones around her. Back when she lived in Iowa it wasn’t only Eddie who got a card and a gift from her but everyone she loved. She would send a card and a small present to each of her closest friends, Eddie’s Mom and even her own Mom, despite the complicated relationship that she had with her. Dani would also dedicate part of the school day to making cards with her students and giving them a small gift each too. 

Dani didn’t necessarily deem the day just for romantic love, but every type of love that she could imagine. However, this year with Jamie, something had felt different about the upcoming holiday. Usually, she loved to spend time with everyone she loved and cared for and she would spread her time evenly amongst as many people as she could but this year all she wanted to do was spend time with Jamie. She knew that she didn’t have to prove how much she cared for her girlfriend but the idea of having a day dedicated to showering her with love and affection was too good not to miss.

“Why does there have to be a specific day for people to express their love? I don’t get it. I guarantee there will be at least 20 flustered men running in here all of next week asking for a generic bunch of roses just so they can prove that they love their wives. There’s no thought put into it at all, is there? If you love someone, why can't you show them every day?” Jamie mumbled as she climbed down from the ladder to look up at the sickening bright pink banner that she had just hung up.

“I didn’t know you were the Grinch of Valentine’s Day” Dani giggled as she moved to the side to let Jamie stand next to her.

“I’m not” Jamie said as she picked up the ladder and moved it to the other window so that she could put a banner in that one too, “I just don’t see the point”.

“Not even this year?” Dani said laughing softly at how grumpy Jamie was when she talked about the holiday. Dani adored grumpy Jamie and it was surprising how often she came out. Usually, it was when she’d eat something new like pancakes and maple syrup and go on and on about how it wasn’t right and how they were too sweet and how no one should eat them for breakfast. Dani couldn’t help the wide smile that would spread across her face every time that Jamie would moan about something as she looked so adorable whilst doing it.

“Especially this year” Jamie said as she made her way up the ladders with the banner, “You know how much I like you and I hope I make that clear every single day”.

“You do” Dani giggled as she remembered all the times that Jamie had planned romantic days out or meals together or gave her little presents for no apparent reason. She knew that Jamie found it difficult to open up and express her feelings and she knew how much weight the word ‘love’ held for her which is why neither of them had said it to the other yet, but they both felt it growing stronger by the day.

“Wouldn’t you be disappointed if I showed up next week on Valentine’s Day with a bunch of red roses that I had bought last minute and a box of chocolates?” Jamie asked, hoping Dani would prove her point about the day.

“But if they came from you” Dani said smiling softly, “Then it wouldn’t matter”.

“But you don’t even like roses, Dani” Jamie said with a chuckle as she glanced down at the blonde who had hold of the ladder that she was stood on, “Wouldn’t you be slightly disappointed if I didn’t put enough effort in to even buy you your favourite flowers?”.

“Maybe” Dani said as she thought seriously about Jamie’s question, “But Eddie never knew what my favourite flowers were, and I was never disappointed when he gave me roses every year”.

Jamie finished hanging the banner in the window and climbed down off the ladder again to stand next to Dani. “All I'm trying to say is that why do I have to conform with everyone else and show you how much you mean to me on one day when I can do it every day?” Jamie said as she wrapped her arms around Dani’s waist and kissed her cheek.

“No one’s saying you have to conform, Jamie” Dani said giggling as she wrapped her arms around Jamie’s neck, “All I’m saying is why can't we show each other on that day too? We don’t have to do the whole roses and chocolate thing, but we can do something more personal if you want to?”.

“You do realise that I do want to celebrate Valentine’s Day with you, I just hate the notion of it is all. I hate that people celebrate it to prove something to their partners and I don’t wanna do that with you, I want you to know every day how much you mean to me” Jamie whispered as she pulled Dani in closer to her.

“Well, you’ve already accomplished that, baby” Dani said softly as she leant forwards to kiss Jamie lovingly, “And we’re not going to celebrate it to prove anything are we? It’s just going to be another day where we tell each other how grateful we are to be able to be together, okay? No proving points or celebrating for show. Just me and you like we are every day, okay?”

“Okay” Jamie said chuckling softly as Dani kissed her cheek, “But if I see one man come in here and ask for a generic bunch of roses on the day, I won't be responsible for my actions”.

Dani just laughed softly and playfully hit Jamie’s arm, “You can't go driving away our customers, the shop’s not even a year old yet”.

____

Ever since Jamie had told Dani that she hated Valentine’s Day, Dani had made a promise to herself that she was going to go all out and make this Valentine’s Day the best one Jamie has ever experienced and she hoped that that would convince her to change her mind about the holiday.

She had spent all week planning out what she was going to do and by the time the day actually arrived, she thought that maybe she had gone a little overboard.

Dani woke up just after 4am. She usually woke up a few times in the middle of the night whereas Jamie usually slept all the way thought until the morning and it was this sleeping pattern that Dani was counting on for her surprise to work.

She gently shuffled out from under Jamie’s body which was half laid on her and half laid on the bed and replaced herself with a pillow so that Jamie would still be comfy. Dani then quickly wrapped herself in one of Jamie’s flannels that was hanging on the back of their bedroom door and proceeded to put her plan into action. 

30 minutes later Dani climbed back into bed and gently replaced the pillow Jamie was laid on for herself and nodded off back to sleep after placing a delicate kiss on Jamie’s forehead as she waited for the morning to arrive.

“Good morning” Dani whispered as she wrapped her arm around Jamie’s waist and placed a quick kiss to her cheek.

Dani had been awake for a little over 10 minutes in anticipation of Jamie waking up. Jamie woke up at 6am like clockwork every morning, regardless of how many hours of sleep she had had, so Dani knew that she would be awake any time soon. And sure enough, a few minutes after 6am, Jamie’s breathing suddenly broke out of its steady shallow rhythm as she took a deep breath in through her nose and shifted slightly in Dani’s arms.

“Happy first Valentine’s Day, baby” Dani whispered as she pulled Jamie’s back flush with her front and placed a few light kisses to Jamie’s neck.

Jamie just groaned softly as she took hold of Dani’s hand that was on her waist. “Happy just another day for us to show how much we care for the other” Jamie mumbled, her voice thick with sleep.

Dani just laughed softly as she continued placing soft gentle kisses on the pieces of Jamie’s skin that she could reach. “Maybe I can change your mind a little” Dani whispered as her lips made their way up to Jamie’s ear.

Jamie just chuckled as she pushed herself further into Dani’s front, “I don’t think you-”. Jamie paused her sentence as she opened her eyes to see a vase of multicoloured roses on her bedside table with a stuffed bear sat next it.

Dani giggled nervously when Jamie paused her sentence as she knew that she would have opened her eyes and saw what was in front of her.

“I know you said you hated Valentine’s Day, but I was hoping to change your mind a little” Dani said as she held Jamie tightly in her arms, “And no, I didn’t just buy you a generic bunch of red roses, I picked each one because of their meaning”.

Jamie just chuckled softly as she turned to face Dani, “Did you read that flower book I gave ya?”.

“Sure did” Dani giggled as she brushed a stray curl from Jamie’s face, “The yellow roses are for friendship because you’re my best friend and the only friend who has ever really known me and accepted me for who I am. The pink roses are for gratitude because I am so so so grateful for you for so many different reasons. I am grateful for you always taking care of me and for always being there for me when I need you and for not giving up on me, even when things get hard. The white roses are for eternal loyalty because I don’t plan on going anywhere anytime soon and I want to spend every single day with you for as long as possible. And the red roses, I think they speak for themselves but since you hate that people buy them just because that’s what people give each other on Valentine’s Day, I’ll explain why I chose them. I chose them because I wanted to change your opinion of them and mainly because they represent true love and that’s what we have. Jamie, you’re my person, you will always be, and I know we haven’t said that word yet to each other and I know that it’s a big step for you and there’s no pressure to say it back or anything, but I just wanted to let you know that I feel it for you, I really do and it’s getting stronger every day”. 

Jamie just stared at Dani with wide and slightly teary eyes as she spoke. No one had ever put this much effort into her, and it was a little overwhelming if she was being honest.

“I hope it’s okay that I’ve told you that” Dani whispered as she searched Jamie’s eyes for something that would tell her it was okay that she had just told Jamie she loved her.

“It is” Jamie whispered through the lump in her throat as she nodded softly. She then wrapped her arms around Dani the best she could and pulled her in close and held her tightly. “I, erm, I feel the same way, but it might-”.

“There’s no pressure to say anything you’re not ready to say yet, okay?” Dani said, cutting Jamie off mid-sentence as she knew what she was trying to say. She knew that it would take Jamie a little longer to be able to say the words and that was fine. Dani wanted Jamie to tell her whenever she was ready to and not a moment sooner.

“And what’s the teddy bear for?” Jamie chuckled as she still held onto Dani tightly with her face buried into her neck.

“Because I thought it looked like you” Dani giggled as she pulled away from the hug to look into Jamie’s eyes, “I saw it in the store, and I couldn’t help but think of you. With its little pair of overalls on and its boots, it looked just like you, so I had to buy it”.

“You’re so cute” Jamie whispered before she placed a loving kiss onto Dani’s lips.

The kiss started off slow and delicate but once Dani deepened it, the kisses became desperate and full of desire. Jamie pushed Dani onto her back and climbed on top of her and as she pulled the duvet up and over them to keep the February chill off of their skin, a few rose petals fell around her. Jamie paused as she watched the red petals float beside her and land on the bedsheet below. 

Dani tried to hold back her smile as she watched Jamie slowly realise what had happened to her surroundings.

Jamie turned around to see their bedroom filled with every type of Valentine’s Day decoration you could think of. There were banners pinned to the walls and hearts covering their wardrobe doors, heart balloons scattered around the room and rose petals covering their duvet. Jamie then turned to see an extremely large teddy bear that had to be bigger than her sat in the corner next to her wardrobe. The bear was exactly the same as the small one on her bedside table clad in overalls, boots and a hat. 

“Dani” Jamie whispered softly as she turned back to look at her girlfriend whose face had been overtaken by a huge toothy grin.

“Do you like it? I did get a bit carried away I know but I wanted to make our first Valentine’s Day memorable” Dani said softly as she reached her Jamie’s hands to hold.

“It’s definitely memorable” Jamie said as she took another look around the room, “And what the hell are we going to do with that bear?”.

Dani just laughed softly at Jamie’s knitted eyebrows and confused expression on her face, “I have no idea, but I couldn’t let it sit in the shop all alone, it looks just like you”.

“It’s a bear,” Jamie said chuckling, “it looks nothing like me”.

“It looks exactly like you” Dani laughed.

Jamie just shook her head as she let out a soft chuckle and looked down at Dani underneath her. She couldn’t get over how lucky she was to have this beautiful, amazing women head over heels for her and putting in so much effort to show her just how much she cared for her.

“So,” Dani said, “have I changed your mind about Valentine’s Day yet?”.

Jamie just chuckled and shook her head, “Not really”.

“Well,” Dani said before she suddenly flipped her and Jamie over so that she was straddling Jamie instead, “Let me try something else then”.

Jamie just let out a quiet moan as she watched Dani shuffle under the duvet with a small smirk on her lips and eyes dark with desire.

“What’s that smell?” Jamie said as she walked into the kitchen after having a shower and getting ready for the day. Luckily Dani’s Valentine’s decorating hadn't spread to anywhere else in the apartment, but the extremely large bear had made its way to sit on their sofa.

“Breakfast” Dani said smiling brightly as she saw Jamie come round the corner, “Or more importantly, a full English breakfast”.

A small smile spread over Jamie’s lips as she took a seat at the kitchen table in front of a plate full of what reminded her of a place that she used to call home.

Dani knew America had been difficult for Jamie to get used to. Jamie was a creature of habit and to just up and leave to a new country was a lot for her to cope with, but Dani had made the transition a little easier. She had been there to explain new food Jamie had never heard of before, she had been there to translate when Jamie had no idea what people were saying and vis versa and she had been there to stop Jamie when she had tried to cross the road without looking the correct way. Every once in a while, when things got a little overwhelming, Jamie would make herself a full English breakfast to remind herself of the only place she had ever known, and Dani thought that she would make her one for Valentine’s Day to remind them of where they first met.

“Did I do a good job?” Dani asked as she sat down next to Jamie at the table, “I know it won't be as good as the ones you make but-”.

“It’s great, Dani. Thank you” Jamie said sincerely as she placed her hand on top of Dani’s, “It’s not exactly like the ones I make because I usually don’t have heart-shaped toast or heart-shaped eggs or bacon arranged in a heart-shape” Jamie said chuckling softly as she looked down at the plate of food in front of her, “But I quite like this version”.

“Really?” Dani said excitedly as she placed a gentle kiss on Jamie’s cheek, “I kinda got carried away again with the hearts, didn’t I?”

“A little” Jamie laughed as she gave Dani’s hand a gentle squeeze, “But I think it’s cute”.

The day turned into just an ordinary one once they had opened their flower shop. The shop was beautifully decorated with banners, balloons and hearts everywhere which seemed to attract a variety of customers. Throughout the day they made many arrangements which had been thoughtfully constructed by each customer which put a smile on Jamie’s face as some people did put genuine effort into selecting the right flowers for their partners. However, the stand full of generic red roses that were by the door of their store had sold out by lunch time and had to be restocked. That afternoon, just as Jamie had anticipated, 6 flustered men came running into their store, breathed a sigh of relief when they saw the stand of roses and purchased a bunch along with a card which they wrote out in their store.

“See what I was talking about” Jamie grumbled as the last customer left their store who had claimed the last bunch of roses that they had and scribbled a few words in a card he put no thought into choosing and ran out of the door in a hurry.

“I do” Dani chuckled as she walked over to meet Jamie who had just locked the front door and kissed her on the cheek, “Want to see what else I have planned for today?”

Jamie just rolled her eyes playfully, “There’s more?”.

“Of course!” Dani said enthusiastically as she took Jamie by the hand and led her up to their apartment.

“Can I look yet?” Jamie groaned as she kept her hands over her eyes and her eyelids tightly shut as Dani had instructed her to do 5 minutes ago before she had left.

“One second” Dani giggled as she came back into the living room.

“Okay, open” Dani said as she stood awkwardly in the middle of the living room waiting for Jamie’s reaction.

“Dani” Jamie whispered as her eyes cleared and focused on what was in front of her. 

Dani, clad in her PJs, was stood in front of a large blanket fort that looked to be made out of their sofa and kitchen table with the overly large teddy bear in her arms.

“A cuddle fort” Dani announced proudly as she held out her arm to point to what she had made during her afternoon break.

“A cuddle fort” Jamie chuckled as she walked closer to look inside of it. As she opened the makeshift door, she saw their duvet on top of their sofa cushions and a pile of blankets and pillows. The fort was illuminated by a few strings of fairly lights and their lamp outside shining down on it, “It’s beautiful”.

“I was going to do the whole romantic dinner thing but you’re right, we can do all that another night, it doesn’t have to be only on this day so, I opted for a cuddle fort instead” Dani said as she watched Jamie eye up her creation, “I know how much you love to cuddle so I thought we could just do that for tonight. Just read a book or something and enjoy each other’s company. How does that sound?”

“Like a dream” Jamie said softly as she turned back around to face Dani, “But I may have already planned a romantic dinner for us”.

“What?” Dani said giggling slightly as Jamie kissed her cheek, “I thought you hated Valentine’s Day?”.

“I didn’t say that” Jamie said chuckling a little.

“Erm, I think you did” Dani said laughing as she wrapped her arms around Jamie’s neck.

“Anyway, I know someone who loves Valentine’s Day so, I may have asked Owen to send me his best recipe that I would be able to manage and I was going to cook you a nice romantic meal to celebrate” Jamie said as she wrapped her arms around Dani’s waist and pulled her close.

“Really?” Dani whispered with a large grin on her face.

“Yeah, thought since you liked the day and all and liked the clichés, I would indulge you. Plus, can't really pass up on the opportunity to have a nice romantic dinner with my girlfriend, can I?” Jamie said softly as she swayed her and Dani side to side.

“You’re an amazing girlfriend, do you know that?” Dani whispered before she kissed Jamie lovingly.

“Yeah, I know” Jamie chuckled when she pulled away from the kiss, “Now you go and sit in the cuddle fort and I’ll be with you in however long it takes me to make this recipe Owen sent”.

“Okay” Dani giggled as she let go of Jamie and walked into the fort, taking the large teddy bear with her for company.

“So, have I changed your mind about Valentine’s Day?” Dani asked quietly as she ran her fingers through Jamie’s hair as Jamie laid on her chest.

They had eaten their romantic meal in the fort that Dani had built then had spent the rest of the night curled up under their duvet in the fort. Jamie had read the last few chapters of the book she was reading to Dani as she ran her fingers up and down Jamie’s side as she held her tight.

“Yeah, a little” Jamie chuckled as she lifted her head up from Dani’s chest, “I still think it’s over-capitalised and that a lot of people don’t put any thought into the day but if you have the right person to spend the day with, it’s not as bad as I had made it out to be”.

“Do I win the prize for the best Valentine’s Day you’ve ever had then?” Dani asked with a playful smile on her face.

“You’ve got no competition, Poppins, I’ve never spent Valentine’s Day with anyone before” Jamie chuckled, “Probably why I hate the day so much, no one’s ever put in any effort to make it a special day for me”.

“You’ve never spent Valentine’s Day with anyone?” Dani asked, a little shocked but suddenly understanding Jamie’s dislike for the day.

Jamie just shook her head.

“So, as well as being our first Valentine’s Day together, it was your first one ever?” Dani asked smiling widely, suddenly thankful for all the time and effort she had put into the day to make it feel special.

“Yeah” Jamie chuckled as she lent her head back on Dani’s chest and squeezed her tightly.

“Did you enjoy the day then?” Dani asked, already knowing the answer to her question.

“Yeah, of course I did. I enjoy every day we get to spend together, Poppins, you know that”, Jamie said smiling widely as she played with Dani’s hair, “But I did enjoy the day a little more than normal”.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> jamie has a secret and dani tries to find out what it is

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had this idea at like 3am the other night and I thought that it was cute so I wrote it! I hope you all enjoy! :)

It had been two weeks. Two whole weeks since Dani and Jamie had boarded the plane that had taken them to America to start the next chapter of their lives together. They had both tried very hard to put what had happened at Bly behind them the best that they could, but the lingering feeling in the back of both of their minds reminded them that that was impossible. The course of events that had taken place in the sleepy little town in England had caused a dramatic shift in their lives and that was the reason why they were where they were right now; sat in a rundown motel in the middle of a quiet town on the east coast of America.

Although they had both tried to forget what had happened at the manor, they would always remember those that they met there and they would forever treasure the knowledge that the manor had given them each other, despite knowing that it may one day take them away from each other too.

The two weeks since they had arrived in America had been filled with jet lag, worry and road trips but they had savoured every single minute together regardless. Dani always found that her hand drifted to rest on Jamie’s thigh during long car rides whilst Jamie snored softly in the seat next to her as she liked the way Jamie’s soft warm flesh reminded her that she was still her and that she still head over heels for the young brunette. And Jamie always found her hand reaching for Dani’s when they were sleeping on a rock-hard mattress in another rundown motel as she liked the way it reminded her that she was safe and that in a country that was so unfamiliar, she had something that felt like home. 

The first night that they had arrived in America, they slept in separate beds. Dani had booked the room and asked for two twin beds as she was anxious about what the receptionist would think about their relationship if she asked for one double bed and also because she didn’t want to presume anything between her and Jamie. 

Jamie had spent every night by her side since that fateful night that now felt like so long ago. The majority of the days leading up to their departure were spent packing and sorting out their affairs. Jamie spent most of the days in her flat but every single night she had come back to the manor to stay with Dani. On the night that had changed the course of their lives forever, Jamie had helped a trembling Dani get changed and into bed and she sat next to her all night holding her hand. Dani was in no fit state to understand what was happening around her that night and Jamie didn’t want to invade her personal space so opted to pull up chair next to her bed and sit with her all night just in case she needed her. Dani reached for her hand as soon as Jamie sat next to her and that’s how they spent the rest of the night, fast asleep hand in hand. The nights after that, Jamie had slept next to Dani in Dani’s bed or her own as Dani had insisted that she not spend all night on a chair again. 

That first night in America they laid facing each other in separate beds in a grim roadside motel near the airport, willing themselves to fall asleep without the other’s weight next to them. Although it was well past midnight for them in the time zone that they were accustomed to, that night their bodies just couldn’t settle without the other.

“I miss you, Poppins” Jamie whispered across the empty space between them that was occupied by their luggage as she watched Dani in the bed opposite her, longing for her to be under the slightly itchy duvet with her.

“I miss you too” Dani whispered as her eyes traced the outline of Jamie’s body under the covers of the bed in front of her and longed to have her arm wrapped around her waist.

The room fell silent for a few moments before Dani shuffled to the other side of the bed and lifted the duvet up as she motioned for Jamie to join her. Jamie chuckled softly before she slipped out from under her duvet, crossed the short distance between the two beds and climbed in next to Dani. Once Jamie was settled in front of her, Dani placed a soft kiss to Jamie’s cheek as she wrapped her arm around her waist and pulled her in close. Within minutes, soft snores filled the room as both women slipped into a deep peaceful sleep with their legs and fingers intertwined.

Over the two weeks that they had been in America, Dani and Jamie had gotten to learn so many things about the other. They had hardly spent a moment apart since they had arrived and as a result, they had gotten to know each other very well. Jamie had found out that Dani brushed her teeth after every single meal that she ate, she hated wearing socks to bed and she insisted on unpacking everything regardless of how long they planned to stay in whatever motel that they were staying in. And Dani had found out that Jamie hated the dark, she loved to wear socks to bed and that she refused to unpack her suitcase and insisted on just rummaging through it every morning to find what she needed which drove Dani crazy.

Although they were starting to learn about each other’s quirky habits and endearing traits, they were also staring to learn more about each other’s past. 

Jamie had a hard time opening up to anyone and letting anyone in, but she had trusted Dani enough to tell her about her childhood and the challenging times in her life, but she had also reserved from telling her some things too. One day when she was ready, she would tell Dani everything and she knew that Dani would be there to listen to her but right now, she had opted to just enjoy their time together and not occupy herself with her past life. 

Over their two weeks in America, Dani had noticed that every night before bed, Jamie would place her rucksack beside the bed, rummage around in it for a few seconds then climb into bed. Dani hadn't enquired about the night time ritual just like she hadn't enquired about why Jamie left the bathroom light on every night and slept with a torch on the bedside table. But every night, Dani noticed Jamie always slept with one hand holding hers and the other dangling off the bed. The first time she had noticed it, she was concerned that Jamie’s arm would get sore, so she had gently lifted it up and laid it across Jamie’s stomach but every night after that, the same thing happened, and Dani stopped moving Jamie’s arm as she realised that her hand was always placed inside her rucksack. Dani had never mentioned it to Jamie, but she had always wondered what Jamie had in her bag that she needed to hold on to during the night and why she wanted to keep it a secret from her.

On the 15th night of their road trip that had no end date as of yet, Dani and Jamie were laid in yet another ridiculously hard bed wrapped in yet another stiff and itchy duvet in yet another rundown roadside motel. Dani’s arm was wrapped around Jamie’s waist like it usually was as Jamie held her hand that was resting on her stomach as her other hand was dangling off the bed and resting in her rucksack. Jamie groaned as she lifted her arm up and shifted a little before it went back to rest inside her bag again.

“Jamie” Dani whispered softly as her arm tightened around her waist and her lips placed a soft kiss to Jamie’s neck. She knew Jamie’s arm was hurting and she had sensed it for the past few nights and had waited for Jamie to maybe discuss whatever it was that she had in her bag that she needed to hold every night, but she hadn't yet, so Dani had decided to try and initiate a conversation about it, “You know that you can talk to me about anything right?”.

Jamie just nodded slowly as she squeezed Dani’s hand lightly, “Yeah, and you know that you can talk to me about anything too, right?”.

“Yeah” Dani whispered as she placed another soft kiss to Jamie’s neck, “And you know that you don’t have to hide anything from me or be embarrassed about anything”.

“Yeah…” Jamie said slowly as she tried to figure out where the conversation was going, “And the same goes for you too, Poppins”.

“I know” Dani whispered against Jamie’s neck as she buried her face into it.

“Where’s this going, Poppins?” Jamie asked softly, her nerves and reservation evident in her voice.

Dani paused for a second as she tried to think of a way to bring the topic up without startling Jamie or making her withdraw. “It’s just that…” Dani whispered as she tried to piece together what to say, “I want you to be comfortable around me, that’s all. If there is anything you think you can't tell me or show me, I want you to know that you can, and I won't judge you or make you feel bad or anything like that”.

Jamie tensed a little at Dani’s words as she started to realise what Dani was trying to get at and Dani sensed this so placed a gentle loving kiss to Jamie’s neck as a way of hopefully trying to get her to relax.

“Is this about my bag?” Jamie whispered, her voice barely audible over the sound of the traffic on the road outside.

“Yeah” Dani whispered as her fingers danced softly along the arm that was dangling off the bed, “I totally get if you don’t want to talk about it, but I also don’t want your arm to hurt every night so whatever you have hidden in there, you can have it in bed with you if you want to. And we don’t have to talk about it either if you don’t want, I just want you to be comfortable is all”.

Silence fell over the room as Jamie took in Dani’s words and contemplated what she had said. She hadn't meant to hide it from Dani, but she did feel a little embarrassed by it, but she knew that Dani would probably understand or at least listen to what she had to say.

“I…” Jamie started in a small voice as she tried to find the right words for what she wanted to tell Dani, “I didn’t want to hide it from you or anything I… I think I was just, erm, embarrassed, I don’t know really. I’m sorry if I've upset you or anything, I just-”.

“You haven’t upset me” Dani whispered as she tugged on Jamie’s arm so that she would turn over to face her which Jamie happily did. “And there’s no need to be embarrassed around me, okay?” Dani whispered seriously as she held Jamie’s face with her hand, “How many times have I done something embarrassing around you, huh? Loads, right?”.

Jamie just let out soft chuckle as she nodded.

“And did you think any less of me or judge me or anything?” Dani asked, certain of the answer as she knew that Jamie had told her that she liked her even more when she had almost put the wrong type of gas in the car last week because she couldn’t keep her eyes off of Jamie.

“No” Jamie chuckled as she realised the point that Dani was trying to make.

“And I won't ever think any less of you no matter what you tell me or what you do, okay? I’m here if you want to talk about it and I’m also here if you don’t want to talk about it but either way, I can't have you sleeping with your arm like that because it’s hurting you and I don’t want to see you in any pain” Dani whispered before she placed a soft kiss on Jamie’s lips to help reassure her.

“Promise you won't laugh then” Jamie whispered before she turned over and started to fiddle with her bag.

“Promise” Dani said seriously.

Jamie turned back over a few seconds later and Dani couldn’t tell what she had in her hand as the room was dark, with only a small amount of light spilling out through the slightly ajar bathroom door.

“So, erm, this is Ellie” Jamie whispered nervously as she brought the item in her hands closer to Dani.

“A teddy bear?” Dani whispered as she tried her hardest to make out the fluffy item in Jamie’s hand. 

“Yeah” Jamie said softly as she kept her eyes focussed on the bear and not on Dani laid in front of her, “I can't sleep without her”.

Dani smiled softly as she draped her arm over Jamie’s waist and pulled her in closer, “Was that what you were hiding from me? A teddy bear?”. Dani had made up all sorts of ideas about what Jamie could have been hiding in her bag, but a teddy bear wasn’t one of them and she couldn’t get over how wholesome and adorable it was.

“Yeah” Jamie whispered quietly as her eyes kept focused on Ellie, “And just so you know she’s not a bear, she’s an elephant”.

“Oh, sorry, it’s dark” Dani whispered as she squinted her eyes to make out large ears and a trunk.

Jamie just chuckled as she handed Ellie to Dani.

“Are you sure?” Dani whispered hesitantly before she reached her hand up in preparation to take the toy. She knew how much Jamie valued her possessions and she tried hard not to interfere too much with her stuff as she knew it made Jamie a little uncomfortable, so she was shocked when Jamie very willingly handed over the toy which obviously meant so much to her.

“Yeah” Jamie whispered as she waited for the stuffed animal to be taken from her. “So you can tell that she’s an elephant and not a bear” Jamie chuckled as she watched Dani’s hesitant hand take Ellie.

Dani took a moment to inspect the animal and run her thumbs over its soft fur. Dani could tell that Ellie had to be as old as Jamie was by the way she felt and the fact that she had two different buttons for her eyes. “She’s adorable” Dani whispered as she handed the toy back to Jamie with care, “And very clearly an elephant. Sorry for calling her a bear”.

Jamie just chuckled as she ran her thumb over one of the toy’s ears, “It’s all right, she forgives you”.

“Why did you hide her from me? I don’t mind you sleeping with her” Dani asked softly.

Jamie just chuckled as she kept her gaze fixed on Ellie, “I guess I was just embarrassed. What 27-year-old still sleeps with a stuffed animal?”.

Dani lifted her arm from Jamie’s waist and quickly got out of bed and for a second a flood of anxiety washed over Jamie, but it eased slightly as she watched Dani pull her suitcase out from under the bed and retrieve something before climbing back under the covers.

“Me” Dani said giggling softly as she handed Jamie a scruffy toy panda.

Jamie frowned as she looked down at the toy that was given to her and back up at Dani, “You never told me you had a stuffed animal”.

“Just like you didn’t tell me about yours” Dani giggled as her arm wrapped back around Jamie’s waist so that she could pull herself closer into Jamie.

“What’s their name?” Jamie asked softly as she went back to studying the bear.

“Princess” Dani laughed as she watched Jamie’s eyebrows furrow.

“Princess?” Jamie questioned as she looked back up at Dani.

“Yeah, I got her when I was around 3 and I was obsessed with princesses at the time so that’s what I called it her. I know it wasn’t very original but I was only little so maybe cut me some slack, yeah?” Dani chuckled as Jamie handed the toy back to her.

“And you still sleep with her?” Jamie whispered.

Dani nodded, “Yeah, not every night but when I first moved to England I did. Everything was so new and scary, and she was the only thing that brought me a little comfort, y’know?”.

Jamie just nodded. She knew how heavily she had relied on Ellie to bring her that much needed comfort in a new environment too, so she understood what Dani meant.

“Actually, the first night I didn’t sleep with her was when you stayed over for the first time” Dani said smiling softly at Jamie.

“Really?” Jamie asked to which Dani just nodded, “That’s the first time that I slept without Ellie too”.

Dani just smiled widely before she placed a gentle kiss to Jamie’s lips. “Do you want to tell me about her?” Dani asked softly as she reached for Jamie’s free hand that wasn’t holding Ellie. 

Jamie just nodded slowly as she shifted a little to get comfy. “I, erm, I got her when I was born, my Dad bought me her from the hospital. She’s the only toy that anyone ever got me, so I clung onto her for dear life. When I went into foster care, she’s one of the very few things that I took with me and I managed to keep her with me no matter where I went. When I was moving from foster home to foster home, I used to keep her in my backpack so that if I ever got moved with no prior warning, I’d always have her with me, and I've done it ever since. When I moved down to London she was always in my bag and she even stayed with me in prison” Jamie chuckled as she placed a soft kiss to Ellie’s head, “When I got arrested, she was in my backpack, so I knew that she was somewhere in the prison when I got transferred there. Although I couldn’t have her with me, it brought me comfort knowing that she was in the same place as me and that she was somewhere safe. When I got out, they gave me my backpack back and sure enough she was right where I had left her. From that day on I’ve never slept without her. It’s stupid I know but she’s the only thing that’s been a constant in my life y’know, and I just like having her close”.

“It’s not stupid at all” Dani whispered softly as she let go of Princess to cup Jamie’s face with both of her hands and she gently wiped the few tears that had fallen from her eyes, “And thank you for telling me, I know it probably wasn’t easy for you”. 

Jamie just smiled softly as she wrapped both her arms around Dani’s neck and pulled her closer. “You’re amazing, do you know that?” Jamie whispered as she buried her face into Dani’s neck.

Dani just chuckled softly as she wrapped her arms around Jamie and hugged her tightly, “Now no more dangling your arm off the bed every night and hurting yourself”.

“I won't” Jamie laughed as she pushed Dani onto her back so that she could lay on her comfortably.

They both got settled into a comfortable position with Dani laid on her back and Jamie’s head laid on her chest as Jamie held Ellie in her hand and Dani held Princess in hers.

“Thanks for making me feel safe” Jamie whispered as she placed a gentle kiss to Dani’s chest, “And for not laughing when I told you about Ellie”.

“I would never make fun of you, I promise” Dani whispered as she ran her fingers though Jamie’s hair, “And thank you for trusting me enough to tell me about her”.

“I really like you, Poppins” Jamie whispered as she reached up to place a soft kiss to Dani’s lips. “And Ellie really likes you too” Jamie chuckled as she lifted Ellie up to place a kiss to Dani’s cheek.

Dani just let out a soft giggle before she said, “Me and Princess really like you both too”.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> dani and jamie building furniture

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is just a little something that I wrote ages ago and never got around to posting, hope you all enjoy!! :)

“Jamie!” Dani shouted as she sat in the middle of a pile of wooden slats and tiny screws and other little pieces that she had no idea what to do with and a sheet of so called ‘instructions’ in her hands.

Dani and Jamie had bought a bed the day before after spending almost a year sleeping on just a mattress propped up on a stack of pallets. All the money that they had had been ploughed into their beloved flower shop business and essential items for their apartment and unfortunately a bed frame didn’t fall into the ‘essential items’ category. The first item that they had bought for their apartment had been a mattress which was used as not only a place to sleep but a place to sit on, have dinner on and a place to cuddle on in their first few months of living together. Their mattress had been the most important item that they owned, and Jamie had had the ingenious idea of making it into a bed by propping it up with pallets two weeks after they had bought it. Jamie had acquired the pallets then borrowed their neighbours drill and turned them into a bedframe which Dani had then painted. 

The pallets had served them well as a makeshift bedframe but almost a year later, after Jamie had gotten a little carried away one night, they had broken so, they had decided that it was finally time to invest in a real bedframe. The day after the makeshift bedframe had been broken, they had gone in search of a real one and they had finally found one after looking in what had felt like a thousand different stores. Jamie had promised that she would build it as she knew that Dani wasn’t the best at DIY and Dani had agreed, even though she had wanted to ask their friends for help.

“You wanted me?” Jamie said tentatively as she entered their bedroom, knowing full well that she was in trouble. She had taken one look at the so called ‘instructions’ and the thousands of pieces that the frame had come in and immediately bolted. She hadn't anticipated that the bedframe would come in that many tiny pieces as she had never bought a bedframe before, having opted to just have her mattress on the floor in her flat in Bly as she didn’t have the money to buy one. 

“You said ‘I’ll get started on the bed Dani, it’ll be easy’” Dani said as she stood up and gestured to all the pieces laid out on the floor, “Yet you disappeared into the kitchen and I’ve not seen you since. You said you’ll build it so help me build it”.

Jamie smirked as she placed her hand on Dani’s hip and gently pushed her back against the mattress that was stood lent against the wall. “I’m sorry, baby” Jamie said as her lips found Dani’s neck in hopes of distracting her girlfriend who was clearly annoyed that she had left her to struggle building the bedframe on her own, “Let me make it up to you”.

Dani rolled her eyes playfully as she happily fell back against the upright mattress and let Jamie’s lips lovingly attack her neck. Jamie always used this specific technique every time Dani was annoyed at her and it worked every single time. She had found that if she pinned Dani to the nearest surface that she could find then attach her lips to the spot that she knew Dani loved, within a minute, any feelings of annoyance that Dani had had towards her were long gone. 

“Jamie!” Dani said laughing as she tried to push herself forward but was only pushed further back into the mattress by Jamie’s strong hands on her hips, “We’re never going to have a bed if you keep this up”.

“Don’t need a bed” Jamie said huskily against Dani’s neck as her teeth scraped along smooth skin.

“Where would we, y’know, if we didn’t have a bed?” Dani said chuckling softly as she tried to stop Jamie’s actions so that they could carry on building the bedframe, even though the idea of abandoning it all together and doing whatever Jamie had in mind was far more appealing.

“Think you know by now Poppins that we don’t need a bed for that” Jamie whispered as she bit lightly on Dani’s neck which caused a soft moan to slip out of her slightly parted lips, “Did you forget about the sofa, the floor, the kitchen counter, the back of the door, the back office of the shop, the list goes on?”.

Dani just laughed softly and let her eyes flutter shut as she focused on Jamie’s lips on her neck and her hands pulling her sweater out of her skirt.

“Jamie” Dani said softly as Jamie’s hand slipped down the front of skirt, “We’ve got a bed to build”. It took as the self-control that Dani had to still Jamie’s actions, but she knew that there was no way that their new bed would ever get built if Jamie got her way and it would only cause an argument in the days to come when the bedframe was still in pieces on their floor.

“Dani” Jamie groaned as she pulled her hand out of Dani’s skirt and laughed softly as she rested her head on her shoulder, “There’s no way we can build that bedframe”.

Dani just laughed softly as she remembered Jamie telling her ‘how hard could building a bedframe be?’, “You’re the one who insisted that we build it ourselves”.

“I know” Jamie groaned as she wrapped her arms around Dani’s waist to pull her closer, “I’m sorry, baby”.

“I know how you can make it up to me” Dani whispered into Jamie’s ear as her teeth lightly grazed and tugged on the lobe.

Jamie’s eyebrows raised at Dani’s comment and a small smirk tugged at her lips, “Oh, really?”.

“Yeah” Dani said as she ran her tongue unconsciously over her bottom lip.

“Tell me, baby” Jamie whispered as she pressed Dani further into the mattress.

Dani dug her nails softly into Jamie’s bare midriff and pulled her in closer so that she could whisper into her ear, “Help me build the bed like you promised, then we can test it out together as soon as we’ve finished”.

Jamie just groaned as she pulled away from Dani who was laughing softly.

“It’s a good job I love ya, Poppins” Jamie said chuckling as she walked across the room and sat down on the floor next to all of the scattered pieces.

“I love you too” Dani giggled as she sat down next to Jamie and kissed her cheek lovingly.

Dani had never seen Jamie work so fast. 2 hours later, Dani was arranging the cushions on their bed whilst Jamie stood back and watched her. It hadn't taken them as long as they had anticipated to build the bedframe. The instructions were clearer than they had first realised, and the pieces seemed to slot together pretty easily. The added incentive also didn’t harm the pace at which they worked either.

“So…” Jamie said with a small smirk creeping onto her lips as she watched Dani smooth down the duvet for the final time.

“So what?” Dani said holding back her laugh as she turned to face Jamie who was stood near the doorway with a cocky grin on her face.

“Wanna test it out?” Jamie asked as she slowly closed the gap between her and Dani.

“As long as you promised not to break the bed again” Dani giggled as she pulled Jamie into her by the waist.

“No promises” Jamie chuckled as she gently pushed Dani back onto their new bed and crawled on top of her.


End file.
